May 28, 2019 "Plane Crazy"

The Liberty Gazette

May 28, 2019

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Charles Lindbergh’s non-stop flight across the Atlantic inspired a great many people in a great many ways. The most obvious was within the aviation industry. Engineers went to work designing aircraft that could fly longer. Businessmen wrote new business plans for ways in which the airplane could contribute to efficiency and profits. Pilots got a shot of “we can do it!” and competed for more “firsts.”

But even outside the aviation industry, Lindbergh’s flight was a story of America’s spirit. That spirit reached every nook and cranny of American life.

Walt Disney was another influencer. Cartooning ballooned in popularity, especially as full-length feature films after the premier of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Animation caught the attention of children, which parents found useful, but also drew to it new artistic talent.

This was the “Roaring Twenties.” Much of the population was moving from farms to cities. People were defying Prohibition, indulging in new discoveries, such as hairstyles, make-up, dancing, and attire. It was a time of distinctive fashion trends and America became a society of mass consumption.

This was also the Golden Era of Flight. World War I had ended, and the airplane was a new item. Those with vision and imagination saw the potential the flying machines offered.

Ironically, Disney was born less than two months before Lindbergh. When the two were 26 and 25, respectively, Lindbergh dared a record flight across the Atlantic, and Disney debuted his first animation, “Plane Crazy,” a “sound cartoon” he created as tribute to Lindbergh and that historic flight.

And so it was that Mickey Mouse’s career started off in the building and flying of airplanes. This past May 16 was the 91st anniversary of that day when Disney introduced the world to his black mouse, who was plane crazy. And that crazy part was, well, accurate. The first rendition of the airplane didn’t fly, it crashed. As they say, never buy the Model A of anything. So, Mickey converted his car to an airplane. He even skimmed a book called, “How to Fly,” because who wouldn’t want to be a hero like Lindy? While it was rough going for a while to get it airborne, he finally made it, and took Minnie along for the ride.

Photo from
http://www.disneyfilmproject.com/2009/05/plane-crazy.html

Unfortunately, Mickey’s manners were abysmal, and his demand for a kiss at altitude caused Minnie to jump out. Fortunately for Minnie, her petticoat served her well as a parachute, possibly making her the first cartoon skydiver. There was a cow in the mix, too. After she was caught up by the plane before it took off, the “milk shower” was an obvious gag when Mickey tried to grab on to something. Now you’ll have to run over to YouTube and search for the film.

The six-minute animated short was silly, sure to get kids laughing, but its purpose was to celebrate Lucky Lindy, and his New York-to-Paris flight in the Spirit of St. Louis.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

May 21, 2019 Why Bulgaria

The Liberty Gazette

May 21, 2019

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

“Why Bulgaria,” we were asked by several friends. “That’s why, exactly,” we answered. And we’d answer that way because what interested us was that we knew nothing about the country. In just a week and a half, through six cities and visits to over 20 different monuments of historical significance, we learned a lot.

Since we traveled on airliners, we don’t have much to tell about the flying, except to state our gratitude to Lufthansa for great vegan meals, including introducing us to vegan liverwurst. Truly, we were amazed. Other than that, the Airbus A-380 is quite comfortable in Premium Economy, although we felt the sway of the plane that far up front. The A-350-900 we rode on the return was the most impressive. No sway, not too big to fit at most gates (and therefore, no waiting as we did on the A-380). The cabin, designed by BMW, is wide and comfy, and the Rolls Royce engines are quiet and smooth. And, the A-350 seemed to take off in an impressively short distance, just 8,000 feet.

This trip was the first we have taken as part of a group, and the only reason we did was because of the touring company – Atlas Obscura. They are just what their name implies: traveling the globe for the more obscure treasures. The tour of Bulgaria was fascinating. Their 5,000-year history is complicated, and we think of the nation as having somewhat of an identity crisis. They only ended communism thirty years ago, and before that, they were ruled by others – the Ottomans (Turks), the Soviets, the Nazis, and the Soviets again.

There has been tremendous brutality. Killings, torture, and slavery. But one amazing fact for which Bulgarians should be highly revered is their refusal to turn over their resident 50,000 Jews when the Nazis insisted. Those lives were spared because people stood up and said no, such as the bishop of Plovdiv, Metropolitan Kirill, who lay down in front of a transport train filled with Jews, stopping one deportation.

But five hundred years of torture and massacre at the hands of the Ottomans created the most heartbreaking stories. After visiting many cities, we came upon Batak. On our itinerary was the small Orthodox church where many people fled for safety when their priest came out to plead for mercy from the Ottomans. Only about a thousand people survived the most horrific massacre of the April uprising in 1876.

As we are all about the healing story, how grateful we were to have arrived in Batak at the very hour of their annual remembrance that celebrates life in the public square next to that little church. We joined men, women, and children dressed in period clothes and danced to traditional music, with occasional canon firings and shotgun blasts emphasizing the speaker’s reflective narration. Here was the depth of immense pain presented at the same time as witnessing how people move forward from tragedy. So much more than an educational trip, it’s “Why Bulgaria.”

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

May 14, 2019 Abindgon Mullin and her watches

The Liberty Gazette

May 14, 2019

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Abingdon Mullin is afraid of heights. She climbed Mount Kilimanjaro—its peak at 19,341’—because she is not afraid of a challenge.

In a conversation with other female pilots, the topic came around to wristwatches. Why were all the aviator watches made for men? Women would love to have technical watches, but they didn’t want to wear a man’s watch. Abingdon seized the moment. The Abingdon Co. makes watches for adventuresome women.

When I first met her about a decade ago, she had just launched Abingdon Watches with two models, the Jackie and the Amelia. But the market of female aviators is small. Researching how to make her product scalable before appearing on the TV show Shark Tank, Abingdon polled her customers to find out what else they liked to do. The most popular answer was scuba diving. This was an important discovery for her business. Millions of women scuba dive. In broadening her market, she now has watches for women scuba divers.

The company offers 60 different versions of Abingdon watches, and with all the choices of bands, there are about 230 different options. In October, the new watch inspired by NASCAR racer Julia Landauer will debut. You can shop at TheAbingdonCo.com.

Selling watches has become her primary job, but she still runs her ferry pilot business because flying is her passion, and she says she would be impossible to live with if she didn’t fly.

U.S. Air Force Col. Laurel Burkel bought her first Abingdon watch at a Women in Aviation International conference. Two years ago, she told Abingdon she would turn 50 in 2018 and would retire. Humbled by the invitation to her retirement party, Abingdon was ready to commit. “Just say when and where, and I’m there!”

The Colonel’s hand went up. “Hold on. It will be at the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.” Abingdon had played soccer but had never climbed or hiked. She began training.

The Colonel’s retirement would also be a benefit to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Only three of the thirteen guests were civilians. One was 70 years old and officiated the ceremony. They raised $60,000. For her part, Abingdon made a promise to those who donated through her link. She would shout out their names from the top of the mountain.

However, she was stricken with altitude sickness. She struggled to shout the names she had carried on her back all the way up. Despite fever, shakes, nausea, and dizziness, she kept her commitment, and every donor’s name soared from the top of Mount Kilimanjaro. Her next adventure on high terrain will be Machu Picchu, which is only 7,970’.

One of my favorite things about Abingdon is how she defines success. It comes, she says, when you’ve done everything within your power, put your heart and soul into it, even lost your breath striving for it. If you didn’t attain what you tried to do, you learned, and every lesson is a gift.

She’s not afraid of a challenge.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

May 7, 2019 Abingdon Mullin, the pilot

The Liberty Gazette

May 7, 2019

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

When Abingdon Mullin was a sophomore in high school, she went to the Career Center the first Wednesday of every month for the free food offered during presentations. One day, two pilots from a flight school at nearby Burbank airport talked about careers in flying.

Abingdon learned two things. First, a military background wasn’t required. Second, airline flying wasn’t the only choice. They told her about corporate flying, banner towing, firefighting, missionary flights, morning traffic watch (off work by 10:00 am). The options surprised her.

She also liked the idea of being paid to travel. As an immigrant, born in England and raised by a Mexican mother, she traveled to see family and had her passport before age 1. Flying would be a perfect career.

After college, she spent every waking moment studying and flying and earned her private pilot certificate in 34 days. Upon obtaining her commercial certificate, she worked in sales as a demo pilot for Cirrus Aircraft, and later Lancair. Then she launched an aircraft ferrying business. As a result, she’s flown about 80 different types of aircraft in 20 countries. During that time, she studied more and became a flight instructor, then spent a year flying for Seaborne Airlines in Puerto Rico.

What she likes about ferrying is that she often flies an aircraft that is outside of its “comfort zone” (it’s condition possibly a concern). There isn’t a book written on how to do that. Sometimes, it’s outside the pilot’s comfort zone too, though not necessarily outside their skill set. She has turned down many flights because of the condition of the airplane.

 “Aviation is integral to all our lives whether we ever set foot on an airliner or not,” Abingdon affirms. “From what we order through Amazon to the groceries we buy—like avocados from Mexico.”

She says it has made the universe our neighborhood. “After Notre Dame Cathedral burned, many people shared photos of when they were there. Unless they hadn’t been there. They either said, ‘I wish I’d seen Notre Dame before it burned,’ or ‘I’m glad I saw it.’ But you can get on a plane and go! A couple of generations ago, you couldn’t. So even if you have no interest in aviation, you still benefit because of it. You can move for a job or college, visit distant grandkids, meet someone online and marry, because of aviation.”

Among the planes she’s flown so far, her favorite for long flights is the Lancair Evolution. It can carry a lot of weight, and you can fly it single pilot.

What has she not flown yet but is eager to? It’s a tie: Stearman, because it’s a classic, and the Boeing 737 because she holds a type rating for the Airbus A320 and is curious about the differences between the two.

Abingdon was the only girl in the Career Center that day, and there had never been a pilot in her family. Free food was a great start. Come back next week for more from this pilot-entrepreneur.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com