By AMELIA REIHELD. RooooOOOOAAAAARrrrrrrrrr…. Well, here it is, sunrise over Oshkosh. 6:07 a.m., abeam the North 40 Campground, to be precise. That, my friends, is reveille at AirVenture: Thousands of radial-engine horses stampeding deafeningly about 18 inches over our tents. To those aviation enthusiasts being dragged so rudely from Morpheus’s sweet embrace, it may be […]
Amelia Reiheld
GA joins unprecedented search efforts for Florida teens
By AMELIA REIHELD. Everybody in the country, it seems, heard the terrible news: Two 14-year-old boys, Austin Stephanos and Perry Cohen, had gone out fishing near their south Florida home July 24. They were last seen when they bought more than 100 gallons of fuel at 1:30 in the afternoon and headed out of the […]
The last link: Dealing with the loss of a friend
By AMELIA REIHELD. “Oh, $%*@# !….” Waking up to the news that he had lost another friend to an aviation accident was not a good way to start the day for Tom Bush (CDR, USN, ret.) This latest tragic mishap claimed pilot number 21 in his own necrology of civilian and military pilots he had […]
Arriving at Oshkosh in style
By AMELIA REIHELD. How do you get to Oshkosh from here? If you’re headed that way for the Experimental Aircraft Association’s famed AirVenture in late July, there’s the Fisk Arrival, which gives new meaning to “line up and wait” — in motion. It’s very exciting, merging all kinds of airplanes, arriving from all points of the compass, […]
Flying in to a fly-in
By AMELIA REIHELD. Some people say you’re a real pilot the day you solo. Some insist you have to have that airman’s certificate in your pocket. But those who have flown into Oshkosh, Wisconsin, during the famous AirVenture Fly-In say there’s no more triumphant sense of arrival as a pilot than landing three-to-a-runway at OSH […]
Air Boss: Keeping airshows and fly-ins safe
By AMELIA REIHELD. Ever flown into AirVenture at Oshkosh? SUN ‘n FUN in Lakeland, Florida? Any of the major fly-ins around the country? If so, you’ll know it’s true: Air bosses rock! I’d flown into the two big events several times, and marveled at the Air Traffic Control at both places. People wearing bright pink polo […]
An aerial adventure to Puerto Rico
By AMELIA REIHELD. “Who wants to go along as copilot on an aerial Caribbean adventure to see the REAL Puerto Rico?” That question, posed on an online pilot forum by Bostonian and friend Dan Figueroa, caught me in a weak moment. My hand shot up well before better sense took over. It was an easy […]
Become an international pilot
By AMELIA REIHELD. It’s the stuff of dreams, I tell you, flitting off in your own little airplane to look down at the world’s prettiest water, to loll on idyllic palm-fringed beaches, to go and come as you please. Just pack your bathing suit, your credit card, and your passport, and you’re good to go. […]