I read the articles on youth in aviation in your Dec. 10 edition with interest. I especially enjoyed the five tips on being an ambassador from Mr. Larkins and his point that the education needs to be ongoing. In the 20 years I have been instructing I have flown with many young people on “intro […]
Planes and parks can share space
n the Dec. 10, 2004, issue, Meg Godlewski noted that the city of Chicago’s director of planning and development had stated that “There are no parks where airstrips are a compatible use” (Can planes and parks share space?) In fact, an excellent example of such peaceful coexistence is the relationship between the city of Palo […]
An inspiration
I wanted to thank you for Meg Godlewski’s article about Rob Drake and Christy Helgeson, which ran in the Christmas Eve issue. Thanks for showcasing the diversity of our aviation community. At the risk of sounding clichéd, it is an inspiration to read about Rob’s passion for flight, and how his circumstances aren’t getting in […]
Say again
I enjoyed reading Meg Godlewski’s article about Rob Drake and his instructor, Christy Helgeson (Say Again Rob: Deaf student pilot takes to the skies over Seattle, Dec. 24, 2004, issue). I’m deaf myself, but I have the benefit of a cochlear implant. When I got my third class medical in 2001, I was profoundly deaf […]
The rest of the story
I just received the Dec. 24 issue and was surprised and pleased to see your story on the Lockheed Orion “Shellightning.” Your mention of my book “Revolution in the Sky” was additionally generous and heartwarming. You might like to know that “Shellightning” is still in existence. l don’t have all the details, but I understand […]
“Shellightning” update
Re: More to the story than meets the eye: Sam Lyons’ ‘Shellightning’ hides a fascinating tale in the Dec. 24 issue: I took this picture in 1967 at the old Movieland of the Air. The plane was in a sorry state of condition. I wonder what happened to it. As I remember, the collection was […]
The corsair: Stories abound about one of the best fights to come out of World War II
The F4U Corsair was one of the best fighters to come out of World War II. Some claim it was the best. Marine Corps fighter squadrons such as Boyington’s “”Black Sheep Squadron,”” VMF-214, and the Navy’s VF-17, Blackburn’s “”Jolly Rogers,”” made the Corsair front-page news during World War II. Stories abound about its ruggedness and […]
Now that’s whale watching!
One of the best shows on earth is getting underway off the coast of California as the gray whales make their annual migration north. Biplane, Air Combat & Warbird Adventures in Carlsbad, Calif., offers you a chance to watch the show from a vantage point 1,500 feet in the air, from the cockpit of a […]
The newest jet jockeys
University of Florida scientists have grown rat brain cells in a petri dish and taught them to fly a fighter plane, according to school officials. The “”brain,”” grown from 25,000 neural cells extracted from a single embryo, has been taught to fly an F-22 jet simulator, they claim. “”When we first hooked it up, the […]