December 27, 2022 How Christmas Was Saved

The Liberty Gazette

December 27, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

The morning of December 20, 2022, the urgent call went out around the world to certified flight instructors who specialize in international procedures. It seemed there had been an oversight. A very important pilot with a sizable crew had been so busy with work that they missed the deadline for recurrent training, with just days left until their annual flight around the earth. To complicate the matter, there was no time to get to the usual training facility. But they couldn’t fly out of currency – that would be illegal! Oh, the border crossings! The permits! The flight plans to file! The Honorable Kris Kringle was going to be in a pickle! 

“Emergency!” read the memo from the Chief of Flight Training. “No time to wait! International Procedures Instructor needed. All expenses paid + bonus. Travel required. Client is at the North Pole.”

Ricky and Jessica were proud new parents. This would be four-month-old Grant’s first Christmas. They thought back to the excitement of Christmas in their own childhoods, anticipating an impressive rooftop landing, even if there was a crosswind and snow. Now, they were both pilots. They could help! 

In a flurry of thumbs, Jessica texted the Chief. “We’ll do it! Ricky and I! But we need to bring baby Grant with us – will that be okay?” 

The Chief was elated to get this message, but he wondered if bringing an infant would be a good idea. There was no time to spare. “Bring little Grant,” he replied. “It will be the most special first Christmas, and you can write about it in his baby book.” He blinked and shook his head. Did he really just write that? Well, there was no time to ponder. There was no way the Chief was going to be the cause of millions of children not getting their presents on time. There were puzzles and games, bikes and dolls, toy cars and trains, and so much to be done. While Professor Kringle and his team weighed all the gifts and completed their weight and balance calculations, the Chief would do his part. 

“Be at the airport tonight at 7:00 am sharp!” he texted back to Jessica. “It will take a day to get there, then you’ll have one day to give the crew their training. You will be back in time for Christmas. You, Ricky, and Grant are going to be heroes!” He hit send. Then he remembered one more thing. “Bundle up!”

The new family boarded a 737 and flew north. Little Grant cooed and smiled, entertaining the elves while the jolly man and his furry crew listened intently to all the knowledge Jessica and Ricky had to impart. At the end of a full day of training, the instructor-heroes signed the FAA documents, making Santa Claus and his eight crewmembers legal to fly around the globe. Then Ricky patted Rudolph on the head and said, “Remember to light up those landing-noses on final approach.” Then they all gathered ‘round for a group selfie for Grant’s baby book. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

December 20, 2022 My, How Time Flies

The Liberty Gazette

December 20, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: It’s hard to believe it has been 10 years since we pulled over on a freeway to watch the live broadcast of Austrian Felix Baumgartner making the ultimate base jump – from the edge of space. A space jump. He broke three records that day. His was the highest manned balloon flight and the highest freefall, and in that freefall, he was the first to break the speed of sound (without an aircraft), which is around 761 mph (depending on a few factors, such as temperature and humidity). Sixty-five years to the day after Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier, Felix dove 846 mph, breaking the sound barrier with his body before pulling his chute and landing in the New Mexico desert.

The extraordinary leap, which required the cooperation of the U.S. Air Force, the FAA, NASA, and other agencies, was seven years in the making. Red Bull sponsored the project called “Stratos” which contributed to technological advancements as difficult problems were solved on the turbulent path to success. 

The two-hour documentary, “Mission to the Edge of Space,” poignantly demonstrates team accomplishments versus solo accomplishments, something so important that it can mean the difference between life and death. Living and breathing the team concept so deeply that it is part of you will determine the success of any non-solo venture. And that’s where the crux of the problems arose, in lack of trust, because Felix had come from a solo career. But he learned through his mistakes, through his fears, claustrophobia and anxiety, that this was not like solo base jumping. At one point, several years into the project, he walked out – went back to Austria, because he could not handle being confined in the spacesuit. He had a lot to learn. 

The team was built with the best of the best experts in skydiving, ballooning, meteorology, space medicine, life support, capsule engineering, communications, and high performance. Dr. Jonathan Clark served as the Medical Director. He had been the Space Shuttle Crew Surgeon on six missions. He lost his wife, Dr. Laurel Clark, an astronaut on the ill-fated Columbia space shuttle. After that, he made it his mission to figure out ways to make it safer, and he had become an expert in understanding crew escape. He feels that the crew escape options they know about today could have potentially saved his wife and the rest of the Columbia crew. He was determined to implement everything he had learned for Felix’s safety.

The documentary also gives considerable airtime to Col. Joe Kittinger, USAF (Ret.), trained as a fighter pilot, and an aerospace legend whose world record set in 1960 was what Felix sought to break. Felix could not have made the jump without Joe.

You owe yourself the gift of watching what went on behind the scenes. For those who pay attention, the film graciously gives lessons on teamwork, duty and accountability, confidence and trust, all of which apply to so many aspects of life. Your two-hour investment could reap indefinite rewards. https://www.redbull.com/us-en/films/mission-to-the-edge-of-space.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

December 13, 2022 A Glimpse into the Heart of a Pilot

The Liberty Gazette

December 13, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: It wasn’t your everyday occurrence. My friend Susan had flown her boss in his Citation jet to a small island in the Bahamas and was relaxing on the beach when someone rushed to her saying her services were needed immediately to take a sick man off the island and to a hospital. The man had had a stroke. She headed back to the airport to get the jet ready, and the man arrived shortly thereafter in the back of a pick-up truck. One of the people who brought him held the oxygen bottle, trying to keep him alive. This was a personal airplane, not used for medical flights, not equipped for patients, and Susan had never flown a critically ill person before. But she got him to Fort Lauderdale quickly, and he was whisked away by ambulance. She never heard the outcome, and she hopes he survived. As stressful as it was to make that flight, it was also personally rewarding to be called upon in a time of need, to be trusted with somebody’s life.

That experience might top the list, but she’s made other feel-good flights as well. Flying Special Olympics athletes has been another highlight in her flying career. The first time, she picked up four athletes, along with their support persons and luggage. When she asked the loading crew in what sport these athletes competed, they shrugged, saying, “We don’t know, but their luggage is heavy!” It turned out to be a bowling team. She says it makes her heart happy to fly these special passengers. 

As a wife and mother of three, and co-owner of a Beechcraft Baron, she flies her family on vacations. As an avid runner, she treats herself to organized 5K runs at airports. She has flown her Baron to run on the runways of JFK in New York City, Miami International Airport, and others. She has invited me to join her. I didn’t know there was such a thing!

Susan began flight training at age 16 with encouragement from her father, who was a recreational pilot. She has fond memories of weekend trips to the beach, holding the charts, helping him navigate, and hanging out at the airport while he worked on the airplane. After graduating from Tufts University (majoring in child psychology and French), unsure of what to do next, she enrolled in Flight Safety Academy in Vero Beach. Earning all her ratings within a year, she was flight instructing when one of her students offered her a job as a corporate pilot. He owned a company and had a small airplane, a Malibu. After a couple of years, she stepped up to the aforementioned Citation, which has given her a great deal of satisfaction. 

To be able to get off the ground, slip through the air, to view the world from above, the physical and mental challenges that flying brings, it takes her away from the everyday world and gives her opportunities to do extraordinary things for others. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

December 6, 2022 Match Game

The Liberty Gazette

December 6, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Mike: When pilots get together and talk shop, it’s like car fanatics when the names of makes and models of airplanes start to fly. Many of the names may be unrecognizable to the uninitiated, and they’re not likely to know the difference. So, we thought we might try and make a little sense out of it, just for fun. 

Among the companies that build airplanes is Textron, their brand name divisions being Cessna Aircraft Company, Beech Aircraft Company, and Bell Helicopters. Matching that aircraft manufacturer to a car builder, the closest comparison would be General Motors Corporation with its GMC, Chevrolet, Buick, and Cadillac divisions. 

Ford Motor Company, along with its Lincoln division, which is the next largest car company in the world, would be kind of equivalent to Piper Aircraft Corporation, though Cirrus may say they are number one in small planes. Cirrus, which some liken to the Mercedes of aircraft, may currently be putting out more planes than Piper, but I’m considering the total number of aircraft built.

Aircraft manufacturer Air Tractor of Olney, Texas, would get the John Deere match because they build crop dusters.

The Chrysler Corporation with its Dodge sports cars, Jeeps, and Ram pickups is kind of difficult to match with an aircraft manufacturer. Aviat with their Huskey bush airplanes and Maule Aircraft are good for the off-road types, but then, Cessna does a pretty good job in this category too. DeHavilland Aircraft of Canada sold its rough-country aircraft division to a company named Viking Aircraft which has been churning out an updated version of the Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) Twin Otter as well as supporting the older Beavers and Otters still in the field. Mooney Aircraft makes clean and quick airplanes, but you don’t want to take them into a rough strip. 

There are a lot of other airplane manufacturers. Like car builders, many have become divisions of other companies, a product line, or they have disappeared altogether. Recently, the last Learjet rolled off the assembly line, and Bombardier, Learjet’s owners, closed down the plant in Wichita. 

Now we come to the big plane builders, Boeing and Airbus. What can I say? They build mostly long-haul Greyhound and Trailways buses. The shorter and smaller “buses” are built by Bombardier, Embraer and Aerospatial. They all once had distinctive personalities, but these days it is becoming more difficult to tell them apart, as they are created by computer programs rather than the imaginations of their designers. 

The computer-designed future drone air mobility aircraft are going to be the Teslas.

Lockheed Martin made the aerial Peterbuilt and Kenworth trucks – the C-130 Hercules, C-141 Starlifter, and the C-5A Galaxy. 

McDonnel Douglas (now Boeing) built the Mack Truck – the C-17 Globemaster. 

Finally, for airplanes that look fast just sitting on the ramp, clean lines and crisp controls, yet economical, the flying match for the Mazda Miata is the Grumman American cats – the Tiger and Cheetah, which includes the Elyminator.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

November 29, 2022 Legacies

The Liberty Gazette

November 29, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: I was reading about Google’s private airport terminal at San Jose Airport near their headquarters. They have their own entrance, white-glove service, private security, and direct access to their airplanes. No need to shuffle among the rest of us; they’re special. If you’ve read our column for very long, you know how unimpressed I am with big egos. These self-proclaimed “giants” have done their good deeds and have chosen their rewards. What a legacy. In contrast, I asked Mike to share his memories of his grandfather. Enjoy a breath of fresh air.

Mike: My grandfather often sat on the patio with a glass of iced tea as he gazed to the southeastern sky through our tall backyard trees. He loved watching airplanes pass overhead every few minutes. They were on approach for landing at Los Angeles International. He always had the company of our family dogs when they weren’t out exploring the rest of the yard, and the desert tortoise was close by during the summer months. 

Grampa wasn’t tall, topping out at just five feet. It’s been nearly thirty years since he passed, but I can still picture him driving up the street in his 1973 Chevy Malibu with only the top of his mostly-bald head barely visible through the steering wheel. He attached a manilla folder to the visor to block the sun further down. He may have been short, but to many, my grandad was a giant. It the way he treated others. 

Grampa was a doctor. A general practitioner. During the Great Depression, he would accept chickens or eggs or some handyman work as payment for medical services, because most people then wouldn’t take something without giving something in exchange. But he was a firm believer in the Hippocratic oath, so no matter if he got paid or not, he never turned anyone away. Most didn’t have health insurance. Somehow, they survived, even without the government’s “assistance.” Mostly because people were generally other-centered rather than self-centered. 

Grampa served as a military doctor during WWII at a hospital in Hawaii for most of the conflict. He returned home to California and his family after VJ Day. His daily routine was to have breakfast with the family, walk five houses down to his office on Sunset Boulevard, and see patients until noon. Then he’d have lunch at home and see patients either at his office or the hospital into the evening. He also delivered my older brother, my sister and me. 

Grampa supported my dreams of flying. Not financially, but with the kind of support and interest only a grandparent can show. He did help me find specialists when I needed some extra tests for my medical certification. But mostly, he was just interested in what I was doing, where I was going, who I was becoming.

My grandfather never thought he stood head and shoulders above anyone, but I always knew he did because he loved helping people get well. That was his life’s work. That is his legacy.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

November 22, 2022 Grid Down Power Up

The Liberty Gazette

November 22, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

When Bob was in high school, he wanted to be a star college football player. He wasn’t looking for a party school, so he enrolled at The Citadel, the military college in South Carolina founded in 1842. But an injury prevented further participation in his dream sport. He earned a degree in electrical engineering, and after graduation, he entered the Air Force with every intention of being a big-time fighter pilot. But his vision wasn’t 20/20. He prayed and believed God had him right where he should be, and that’s when the military moved him to California. He became a systems engineer on the Minuteman Missile at Norton AFB during the Cold War. He was sworn to secrecy and could not divulge his knowledge about the threats of electromagnetic pulses, how they could take down our country’s electrical grids and kill lots of people. 

But after working many years in aerospace, and with an active prayer life, he realized that he must do more to put his knowledge to work for the good of humanity. How Bob Hall is doing that today is by serving in the Texas Senate, authoring critical bills such as nonpartisan SB-1606, relating to the resilience of the electric grid, to protect it (and us) from attacks by our enemies who would like us dead or enslaved. 

Senator Hall has authored this bill before. Four times. Every time, it dies in the State Affairs committee, where Will Metcalf of Conroe has been the chair. Who does Will Metcalf think he is? Why would Will Metcalf block a bill and prevent Texans from protecting our grid? Is he anti-Texan? Anti-American? Who would vote for someone who hates us and loves Russian, Chinese, and Iranian hackers? Please, tell your friends in Conroe and the 16th District about this.

Now, how this article came about is that Senator Hall took the time to travel to Dayton last week and present information about the threat to our grid and what must be done. Watch the documentary, “Grid Down Power Up,” at https://griddownpowerup.com, as if your life depends on it, because it does. 

Then contact your State Representative. In Liberty, that’s Ernest Bailes. 512-463-0570. Numbers for this Metcalf character are (512) 463-0726 or (936) 539-0068.

Tell your Representative that this is critical, and you’ll accept nothing short of a promise to get the Senate and House bills on grid protection passed in the House. We must make it clear that their jobs depend on it.

For those in Liberty, let the Liberty City Council know that you want our electrical grid protected. The technology is available. They’re already doing it in San Antonio. There are no excuses not to.

By the way, Senator Hall didn’t give up on his dream of flying. He flies his Mooney M20J all over Texas and beyond. It gets him to meetings faster with much less hassle than driving or flying commercially. And as you can see, the work he is doing is significant and important.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

November 15, 2022 Tool Schools

The Liberty Gazette

November 15, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

These days, there’s a lot of talk about the labor shortage. Before “the great resignation” began, there was already a pilot shortage. But that’s not the only career in aviation that has been starving to fill seats. Aircraft mechanics have been in short supply for a long time, too. 

For those who love being around airplanes and helicopters but for one reason or another don’t plan to fly for a living, turning wrenches is a fabulous option. The jobs pay well, all the airlines are hiring mechanics, as are non-airline companies, such as charter and private companies. Mechanics can also work independently, which suits some folks quite well. 

To earn FAA certification as an airframe and powerplant mechanic (hereinafter referred to as an “A&P”), a candidate may either complete a course offered by an authorized school, or work for three years under an A&P who has an advanced certification called “Inspector Authorization (“IA”). The candidate in that case would log the hours and have the IA sign them off to take the exams. For those wishing to specialize, certification to work on one or the other, airframes or powerplants, may be earned individually. However, candidates will still take a general written exam that applies to both certificates and then an airframe and/or powerplant specific written, oral, and practical exam. 

A few reasons one may choose to work as an A&P rather than a pilot are the cost of the education, the lack of age limits on professional work (in the U.S., airline pilots are forced to retire at age 65), and the fact that a mechanic doesn’t have to rely on passing a medical exam every year or taking check rides every six months to stay employed. It’s understandable that we want as much guarantee as possible that our commercial pilots are healthy and proficient, and it follows that one could argue that living in the nuts and bolts of the industry may be less stressful than dancing with the clouds. 

The A&P profession is an admirable one. Granted, there are some people who manage to become both pilot and mechanic, like Jed Keck of Dayton, whose illustrious career has taken him all over the world. Jed can fly them and fix them, both airplanes and helicopters. But if you wanted to pick just one, fixing aircraft is a skill that will always be in demand, even when the (God forbid) autonomous flight decks take over and all the pilots fly passengers around on drones (shudder) while seated at a desk, staring at a monitor.

There are three A&P schools in Houston: one at Houston Intercontinental Airport (MIAT), one at Hobby (Aviation Institute of Maintenance), and one at Ellington (Northrop Rice). For the kids in Dr. Abshire’s “Tool School” who want to advance from the sweet Beech 18 he has sitting on a corner lot along San Jacinto Street to professional training, we’re fortunate to be so close to these facilities to crank out the next aircraft mechanic generation.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

November 8, 2022 Air & Earth

The Liberty Gazette

November 8, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Mike: Two of my greatest passions are flying and hiking. Carving out some time to get away from the ordinary business of life, I bask in both when we fly up to Amarillo. 

The propeller on our Grumman Cheetah pulls us through the atmosphere, that invisible mixture of gases that surrounds the earth. Our wings lift us to the altitude that gives us the best tailwind. The big Texas sky looks infinite. It’s the way air scatters the sun’s light; blue light scatters easily, so we don’t see the other colors unless light strikes water droplets in the air at a certain angle, producing a multi-colored arc. We saw no rainbows on our most recent trip to Palo Duro Canyon; the cloudless sky was a brilliant blue. 

Linda: The flight up there was Mike’s turn to captain the ship, and the decision on where to land was his. It’s typically pretty windy in Amarillo, but we have our choice of airports with different options for runway directions. At the big commercial airport, the runways form an X on the ground. This day, the wind was coming from the south at 18 knots gusting to 26, and the runway that is northwest-to-southeast was closed. That left the best option as runway 22, with a hefty left crosswind, rather strong for the light-weight Cheetah, which made Mike work to keep from overshooting his turn to final. But he had no trouble dipping the left wing and touching down on only the left main wheel until the Elyminator slowed enough to let the right wheel down. It was a beautiful, skilled landing with experience at the controls.

Mike: We settled in at a guest house with an expansive stone and wood patio. The koi pond was the feature attraction, and among the several seating areas, our favorite was the “street scene,” a bench under a short, vintage streetlamp replica. This serene spot contributes to relaxation and invites contemplation. 

The next day, we hiked the Lighthouse trail, rated as a “moderate” level for the average hiker. It’s the state park’s most popular trail, the one often seen on postcards. It was nearly six miles round trip and over 600 feet of climbing to get to the plateau where the rock formation that gives the trail its name resides. The last two tenths of a mile are quite an upward scramble. 

Linda: Exposed geologic formations give the canyon its stunning natural beauty. Stratified layers of sedimentary rock present geologists with natural “pages” to research and interpret. For the rest of us, the awe-inspiring aspect is enough. We savor the views flying over the canyon on the way to the airport and then hiking down in the depths. 

For our second day’s trek, we started on the Comanche Trail until it intersected the challenging Rock Garden Trail and then continued climbing steeply to the canyon rim. We’ve checked four out of 15 pedestrian trails off the list now. There’s more flying and hiking to do.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

November 1, 2022 Speedy Ways

The Liberty Gazette

November 1, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: On our way to the Stone Mountain Highland Games in Georgia, we flew by Birmingham, Alabama, and it reminded me of a time several years ago when we were delayed there due to lousy weather. 

We had left the airport in search of lunch, and as the rain poured, we noticed a conga-line of worms squiggling their way across the puddly parking lot. They looked like airliners lining up, following one another to land at Bush Intercontinental. The arrivals into Bush are especially busy on Sunday nights. It’s hard to miss the string of landing lights coming from the east over Liberty County in a nice, neat line. The worms looked just like that, nose-to-tail, so to speak, so we had a good laugh and dubbed it the “WORM ONE” arrival because all special routes, like departures, arrivals, and approaches have names. For instance, one of the routes to Bush is called the “DRLLR FIVE,” and another the “GUSHR THREE” arrival, hat-tips to the significance of the oil industry here.

But back to the Stone Mountain trip. From Birmingham, our flight took us directly over the Talladega Superspeedway. Our first inclination that we would get a birds-eye view of the famous NASCAR track was when we saw the GPS waypoint, DEGAA. Like routes, intersections in the sky have names. In the U.S., we use five-letter words which must be pronounceable as names for intersection waypoints, and as they tend to be christened with local flavor, I knew DEGAA must be near the Talladega speedway. Within spittin’ distance is the Talladega Municipal Airport.

There are other airports near speedways. I went to watch an old family friend race a few years back. All I had to do was fly south about 30 minutes from the county airport near Mom’s house to the Salem Municipal Airport and walk next door to the speedway. No excuse to miss one of the race drivers who had been a good friend of my dad’s since I was a little kid.

Mike: Ontario International was another one. The airport wasn’t difficult to identify once I spied the speedway just north of it. On race days, race driver Bobby Allison used to land his Aerostar there. 

Bobby started something when he learned to fly. He discovered the efficiency of personal air travel. Being the character that he is, he would land on a track if there wasn’t an airport nearby. Other racing teams took notice and started flying too. Such was the beginning of what is known as the “NASCAR Air Force.” They transport their drivers, mechanics, sponsors, pit crew, and families. One team has several 50-seat jets they fill up for each race, and they get their folks back home the same day. 

These days, most NASCAR teams hire professional pilots who undergo the same rigorous regular training as airline pilots. I’ve trained many of the pilots flying for these teams, and they all appreciate airports located next to speedways.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

October 25, 2022 Hey there, laddie, toss me a caber!

The Liberty Gazette

October 25, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: If every month could be October! Cooler weather, harvest time, fall flavors and colors, and festivals! We’ve been to the Texas Renaissance Festival, but this year, we experienced our first real Scottish Highland Games. 

Our Friday morning flight to Stone Mountain, Georgia, in the Elyminator required one fuel stop. We picked Meridian, Mississippi, as they usually have comparatively low fuel prices. It’s a naval aviation training base, and the FBO caters to military customers and civilians alike with free popcorn and ice cream as well as large and luxurious pilot accommodations. But we just wanted the “cheap” fuel. 

Mike flew the first leg, so leaving Meridian was mine. I happened to tell the tower I was ready to taxi just moments ahead of a swarm of T-45 jet trainers, heading out together for a practice party in the sky. As I pulled up to the hold-short line, which is just before turning onto the runway, I turned around and looked behind us to see the little group of jets following close behind. Having spent so much of the last three weeks at home with three rescue dogs who are always at my heels, it almost felt as though we hadn’t dropped everyone off at the sitter’s. 

The Stone Mountain Highland Games did not disappoint. Pro and amateur athletic competitions drew some awesomely strong men and women competing separately in sheaf throwing and caber toss as well as throwing heavy stones (like the shot put). 

Falconers brought their hawks, and Carol Anne Bailey from Red Creek Farm in South Carolina let her border collies show how smart they are, herding sheep and ducks through obstacle courses. 

We walked the paths through the forest to see 91 Scottish clans representing their heritage at tent stations. Throughout the park, we could hear several Pipe and Drum bands as they marched and played familiar tunes. I particularly loved the fiddle tent, where we found a relaxed and intimate atmosphere to hang out and tap to the beat of great fiddle music. Since I can never get enough of it, we also bought tickets to the Saturday night Ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee), a traditional Scottish shindig that includes Scottish country dancing, which is a little like square dancing, but without a caller. 

And the kids – oh, the kids! Highland dancers amaze me. They are athletic and graceful and so much fun to watch.

I was especially grateful for the Sunday morning worship service, and the name of Jesus being proclaimed at this public event. Truly beautiful.

Of course, there was whisky and so many men in kilts. Whether or not Mike wore one may remain a secret. All I can say is I don’t have pictures.

The weather was pretty bad here Monday morning when we left the Atlanta area, but fortunately cleared up before we arrived. I do love my Scottish heritage and the Renaissance era. The only thing they didn’t have then was airplanes. The rest of today’s world I could do without.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

October 18, 2022 Our Muscles Remember

The Liberty Gazette

October 18, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: One time I was sitting “in the back” of an airliner – where passengers sit – perusing the latest Hammacher Schlemmer catalog, when I happened upon a thumbnail image under a title that got my attention. The picture was small, so I put my thumb and forefinger on it and tried to expand it. Yes, I did. Muscle memory. When we do something routine, we tend to almost do it, even if it’s not in the right situation. 

When I was training for my instrument rating, I thought I was the only one obsessed with focusing on speed limit signs when driving, to be at the exact speed posted when I was abeam a new speed limit sign. I learned that this type of thing is not so uncommon among pilots. That is, we tend to encounter the memories embedded in our muscles, which can be amusing when driving a car.

For example, when driving home after work, a pilot who works for a skydiving company routinely fights the muscle memory to pull the lever for the flaps every time she approaches a roundabout. The roundabout triggers a similar feeling, where her mind is programmed that this is the time to pull up the flaps.

I have wished I could kick the rudder and lower the aileron in a strong crosswind while driving. Especially on a high bridge, like the Fred Hartman. Did you know that if you could make your car take off while driving toward Houston on the Fred Hartman, that you would end up right over the LaPorte airport? It points right to it.

And you boaters will appreciate the thought of “trimming.” Air behaves like water, so it’s no surprise that aviation has much in common with, and much derived from nautical protocols. To improve performance and fuel economy, you trim your boat, raising or lowering the bow, to make the boat more efficient in the water. Likewise, we move the trim wheel on an airplane to adjust the aerodynamic forces on the wings and elevators (the smaller “wings” at the rear of the airplane), which helps us maintain level flight without additional effort. Moving that trim wheel is something we do often during flight, so it can be hard to set that aside once we hop in the car. 

Entering an interstate brings that idea to another level. Increasing speed so that I’m merging smoothly with the traffic makes the pilot mind think of “V1, rotate.” V1 is the speed at which you make a decision in a multi-engine airplane. Traveling fast down the runway, about to lift off, once you surpass a certain speed, if you lose an engine, you have to know whether you would be better off continuing or aborting the take-off. It depends on many factors, one being the amount of runway still in front of you for landing. The decision must be quick, and muscle memory is critical – more important than trying to expand an image on paper.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

October 11, 2022 Pilot Life

The Liberty Gazette

October 11, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: We’re on a roll from last week’s reflections on the language and lifestyle of pilots. One of the cool benefits of flying commercially is having a job that allows you to dine in Europe and be back the next day–and be paid to do it! Recreational flyers not to be outdone can boast about taxiing up to an airport restaurant for lunch. We just jump out and go in to eat. Loads of fun, especially when we take non-pilot friends. 

Mike: Another occurrence typical of this field is running into friends at airports across the country or across the globe. I crossed paths with a pilot I hadn’t seen in years while walking into the customs office at Toronto’s Peterson International Airport. Ironically, I had just been telling my co-pilot about this pilot on the flight there. We pointed at each other and shouted to our respective crew, “That’s the guy I was talking about!” Turns out, he too related our exploits to his co-pilot while flying across Africa the week before.

 

Linda: Here’s a fun one: “chocks out.” When on an airliner, or waiting to board, have you ever watched the line crew? They’re the ones wearing orange safety vests and headphones, buzzing around the jets. Standing in front of the airplane, looking up at the pilots, they hold their fists together, pinkie-sides touching, thumbs pointing out, then they pull their fists away in the direction their thumbs are pointing. They are confirming the pilot’s same gesture, which is the instruction that they’re ready for the ground crew to pull out the chocks. Chocks are like small parking curbs. They’re placed in front and behind the airplane’s tires to keep it from rolling. Funny story I heard from an airline couple. When not working, if they were in a noisy bar, when they were ready to leave, they signaled “chocks out.” An easy way to confirm that it’s time to blow that popsicle stand. 

Here's another one. I sleep quite well through turbulence (when I’m not the one piloting the aircraft). However, when it comes to sleep, here’s the other side of it. I have had dreams about taking off and having to dodge powerlines or taxiing through narrow streets or tunnels without scraping the wingtips. This is pretty common among pilots. 

Another difference is the public’s perception of women pilots. For those of us in the industry, it’s a normal, everyday thing, but we aren’t allowed to forget for very long how different the world is outside ours. When I participate in non-aviation social events or meet people in settings other than flying, women usually respond with excitement, like how cool is that that you fly airplanes? But there have actually been some men that exclaim, “No way!” Even in today’s world. That, I cannot understand. My father wasn’t like that. I bite my tongue and refrain from asking if they reside in a town called Bedrock and are fond of the phrase, “Yabba Dabba Do!” 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

October 4, 2022 Pilot Speak, Pilot Do

The Liberty Gazette

October 4, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: “Clear right,” I call out at an intersection when Mike is driving. This is one of the ways in which we communicate that is normalized for us (and the rest of the pilot world) but isn’t common outside of aviation. It comes as part of being a crew, helping each other. There’s a plethora of words used in aviation that raise eyebrows in ‘the real world.’

Like “Standby,” used in place of, hang on, when communicating with air traffic control or co-pilots. I get funny looks if I say this at a check-out counter while I’m digging in my purse. 

“Say again,” is the standard reply when asking an air traffic controller to repeat something. Some of them do talk awfully fast, so that phrase gets some use. It sounds much nicer than, “huh?”

We say things like, “negative” for no; “affirmative” for yes; “ready to copy” when we’re about to be given instructions; “disregard” instead of never mind; and “unable” for I’m not going to comply with your request. 

Recently, I replied to an email in which I was asked to do something with, “Wilco.” Unfortunately, the recipient isn’t a pilot, but I was still surprised he didn’t know. “What’s ‘wilco?’” he asked. “That’s short for ‘will comply,’” I explained. 

My favorite is “Departing the fix.” Mike and I text this to each other when one of us is leaving someplace to come home. 

Mike: Not all unusualness is in the words and phrases though. Some things fall into the broad category of “way of life” for pilots. For instance, situational awareness. It’s easy to understand why being aware of your location, heading, speed, and situation are all so important when flying. Generally speaking, it’s not that easy to just turn off that awareness. And why would we want to? 

We also know not to purchase an airline ticket with multi-leg flights when avoidable. Especially if a flight connects in Chicago’s O’Hare, New York’s LaGuardia, or Denver International. Even if a direct flight is more expensive, it’s worth the extra money to not risk being stuck, missing a connection. Unfortunately, it can be more difficult to avoid Heathrow, depending on where you’re going and the airline you choose. 

Arguably, one of the parts of this lifestyle that infiltrates “normal” life the most is that we check the weather – all the time, not just when flying. We tend to geek out on weather facts and forecasts, even though we’re not meteorologists. 

But one of the most tell-tale signs of a pilot is that we look up to the sky whenever we hear an aircraft – and identifying it when we see it (or sometimes just by the sound). It’s an automatic reaction. We spend so much of our lives up there, that when we’re on the ground and hear an engine, we want to see who’s in our playground.

It’s not always easy to leave work at the office. Then again, our office windows have the best views.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

September 27, 2022 Gotta Love That Pilot Bob

The Liberty Gazette

September 27, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Mike: Many celebrities have learned to fly while preparing for roles or in support of their careers in entertainment. For some, aviation was their first love. Such was the case of actor Blade Stanhope Conway, who later went by Bryce Hutchens and then used his real name, Bob Cummings. He made 68 movies, starring in many of them, four stage productions, and 21 television appearances, including his own show from 1955–1959 named, appropriately, “The Bob Cummings Show.” It was later syndicated as “Love That Bob.”

Born Clarence Robert Orville Cummings in Joplin, Missouri, on June 9, 1910, Bob’s flight instructor was also his godfather, Orville Wright. Bob learned to fly in high school, making his first solo flight on March 3, 1927. He often gave airplane rides for $5 to his classmates and residents of Joplin. He also taught others to fly. At that time, there was not a separate certificate for flight instructors, so any commercial pilot could give flying lessons. Imagine being taught to fly by someone who learned from Orville Wright and had his signature on their pilot certificate! When the FAA finally got around to issuing separate flight instructor certificates, Bob Cummings received instructor certificate #1. 

Bob studied aeronautical engineering but had to drop out of college when Wall Street crashed in 1929. While in college, he acted in some stage productions and was bitten by the acting bug. He studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City, which paid male actors $14 a week (yes, they paid them to study acting – supply and demand).

After completing his training, he looked for work as an actor. He learned that three-quarters of the Broadway plays were English productions, so he cashed in a life insurance policy, bought a round-trip ticket to Britain, and explored the country by motorcycle. He worked on his English accent and invented the name Blade Stanhope Conway. Then he bribed a janitor at an English theater to post that name on the marquee and had his picture taken standing next to it. After sending out eighty of these pictures to agents in New York, he found he was in demand when he returned. He did something similar later, inventing the name Bryce Hutchens, who hailed from Texas. He became so good with different accents, it was almost a trademark. 

Flying, however, was always part of his life. When WWII broke out, Cummings started the first Civil Air Patrol squadron in California, at Glendale’s Grand Central Air Terminal. When that airport closed, the squadron moved to Whiteman Airpark just north of Burbank and still exists. For his CAP duties, he used his own airplane. In 1942, he joined the US Army Air Corps and became a military pilot instructor. 

Cummings owned several airplanes, all named Spinach – Spinach I, Spinach II, etc. That’s because he was also a health-food nut. He even wrote a book about it, called, “Stay Young and Vital.” You gotta love that Bob! 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

September 20, 2022 Going Dutch

The Liberty Gazette

September 20, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: So there was one more thing about our short trip to Holland, Michigan. The quaint little downtown. Typically when traveling, besides airports, we look for good restaurants and coffee shops, art galleries, bookstores, and anything unique to the area. If we’re in town long enough, we’ll look for theater (stage) or musical performances to our taste. This was a quicker trip though, so there was only time to spend a day browsing the historic downtown streets and visit some of the shops. Despite the fact that we did not come during tulip blooming season, Holland did not disappoint.

All along 8th and 9th streets are over a hundred clean and neatly-kept businesses. At Readers’ World bookstore, the multi-tiered shelves were packed with fiction and nonfiction and children’s books. We could spend hours there. 

Lovely oil paintings by local artists hung at Lake Effect art gallery. I saw one that would be perfect on one of our living room walls. 

At Fustini’s Oils & Vinegars we cruised around the store and sampled from the plethora of flavored products. They have so many different choices, you could make 800 different pairings of oil and vinegar. We took home bottles of Michigan Apple, Blueberry, Fig, and Maple balsamic vinegars and olive oils infused with walnut and basil (not together, that’s two separate bottles). We packed up extras for our family visits the following week. By the way, “fustino” is Italian for “drums,” and refers to the steel containers used to store olive oils and balsamic vinegars. After traveling through Europe, the founder, Jim Milligan, decided that would be the perfect name for the shop he envisioned, just like the ones he visited across the pond. Fustini’s offers pairing suggestions and even has four cookbooks and all manner of fantastic, must-have accessories, such as tapas plates, grater dipping plates, and charcuterie boards. And yes, you can even buy fustini from them for your own stash.

And then there was the Holland Clock Company. They sell Black Forest cuckoo clocks imported from Germany. They also sell beer steins and nutcrackers, but the cuckoo clocks got all my attention. They looked just like the ones we saw in Austria and Germany–beautiful, intricately carved works of art and storytelling. 

And what would Holland be without a windmill? Back in 1964, the city acquired De Zwaan, the only authentic Dutch windmill operating in the U.S. It’s 251 years old and still turns and grinds wheat. You can see it at the municipal park, Windmill Island Gardens. Here’s a little trivia for you: before opening De Zwaan to the public, they sent for an expert from the Netherlands to refurbish it, and that fellow made a quick trip to New York City to be a guest on “What’s My Line,” the game show where a celebrity panel had to guess the unusual jobs that guests performed.

If you’ve never been to Holland, Michigan, put it on your list. It’s well worth the trip.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

September 13, 2022 One More Thing

The Liberty Gazette

September 13, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: One more thing about Holland, Michigan. After the sunrise beach stroll, we figured we’d check out Big Red, the most photographed lighthouse in the state, then visit an airport that is shown on the FAA charts as closed, then do some gift shopping in the quaint town. The lighthouse, it turns out, is surrounded by private property and not accessible to the public. No problem. We’ve seen lots of lighthouses, like President Trump’s Turnberry Lighthouse in Ayr, Scotland (birthplace of Robert the Bruce, Scotland’s greatest king), which is open to the public. So seeing Big Red from afar was fine. That gave us more time for other things, like the former military training airfield along Ottawa Beach Road, Park Township Airport. It’s one of the oldest airports and the first to employ a woman-owned and managed Fixed Base Operator (FBO) in the Great Lakes state.

Park Township Airport began in 1937 as a private airfield managed by aviatrix Peg Malone. It was an airmail stop, and Peg had plans to offer regular passenger airline service between Milwaukee and New York, with stops at Holland, Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, and Syracuse. However, effects of the Great Depression prevented that. 

Then, in 1939, the airfield was used to train more than 100 military pilots through a program with Hope College, and as a helicopter training ground as well. The runway is gone, but we traipsed all over the ramp taking pictures and poked around in the historic hangar, where Civil Air Patrol cadet squadron MI-135 still meets. The last chapter of the airport’s long and distinguished history was written two years ago, after a newer, bigger airport, Western Michigan Regional, had been serving the customers with more and better amenities. 

We had survived the entire sunrise beach walk and paid our respects to a piece of aviation history, all without coffee. It was time to bean-up. I pulled out my phone to start searching when suddenly, there we were, in front of KIN Coffee and Craft House, just down the street from the airport. It’s owned by a family with a small farm. Their story goes that they had seven sheep, and cousins Lynn and Jamie were visiting over a very large ball of wool from the farm (which wasn’t yet yarn, but they were working on that). After brainstorming about their shared interests and dreams, they made plans to convert an old Dutch barn into a gorgeous coffee shop. It’s a cozy place with books, crafts, and tasteful décor. I had an oat milk cappuccino and Mike had black coffee. We picked a table, one of the ones that snuggles up to a long, old wooden church pew bench on the wall-side. We gave our thanks and shared a perfect blueberry muffin, bursting with juicy berries. 

I know I said at the start of this, “One more thing about Holland,” but I didn’t realize I’d get to the end so quickly. So next week, we’ll have one more thing. Promise.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

September 6, 2022 Zipping to the Mitten

The Liberty Gazette

September 6, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: A quick trip to the Great Lakes State gave us an opportunity to see the cemetery where Mike’s paternal grandparents are buried. He hadn’t been there in over 30 years, and fortunately, it’s a relatively small place. Although the section and lot numbers aren’t marked, we had no trouble locating the general area. Once in the vicinity, we saw the “Ely” monument standing proud, an American flag at the grave of Grandfather, Lewis Ely. Those interested in family history will appreciate the convenience of landing at a nearby airport and using the courtesy car to see these special patches of land. Within them are remains, but from them are memories, stories, life. 

Mike: My grandfather was a US Marine and fought in France during the Great War, a period he rarely spoke of until near the end of his life. He told us of the time he and another Marine were crossing a field while scouting when a German machine-gun opened fire. Their only cover was a pile of manure, into which they dove. The Germans kept them pinned, clipping the top of the pile until after dark, when they were able to sneak away. The story was ripe for jokes later.

Linda: We value the ability to zip around the continent in our Cheetah, land at small town airports, and visit more people and places in a day than we could do by car in a week. Thanks to a decent tailwind, we landed in Charlotte, Michigan just six hours after departing Baytown. After visiting the cemetery, we took to the skies again to visit my Scottish side of the family on their 10-acre slice of heaven they’ve dubbed “Rosebriar,” in Howell. We shared a night out on the town, and in the morning, fed the chickens and took a walk in the woods, where we spotted interesting plant life, including herbs, flowers, and mushrooms. Cousin Kevin explained that the state is the shape of a mitten and showed us how one’s palm can serve as a map. He and his wife live around that muscly part below the base of the thumb. We hopped all around the hand.

Mike: One of my old co-pilots retired to an airpark in Lake City, a short jaunt further north, so we met for lunch after a restful night at Rosebriar. Catching up is more fun to do in person than by email or phone. It also allows us to recreate old photos, like the one where we stood side-by-side, tilting our heads toward each other, representative of Learjet pilots (who fly in a small cockpit).

We looked forward to a couple of days in Holland, on the western shore of the Mitten State, at about the base of my pinkie finger. Linda woke me early for a sunrise beach stroll barefoot along Lake Michigan, shared only with birds, waves splashing, and the occasional blip from the beacon of a lighthouse or a boat disappearing over the distant horizon. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 30, 2022 The Pilot House

The Liberty Gazette

August 30, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

A few weeks ago, we discovered the Pilot House, a small hotel within walking distance of the airport on the island of Grosse Ile, Michigan. We were so enthralled by what we had read that we decided to fly upfor a visit. Our expectations were high, based on what we had learned, and we can now report that Grosse Ile is all we had hoped for and more. 

Ownership of the Pilot House is now in its second generation. Jim Cortis grew up on the island where his father, Artie, owned a print shop. He had relocated his shop to what is now the Pilot House, which had originally been barracks for employees of aircraft manufacturer Curtiss-Wright. During World War II, the Navy took over the airport, built up the runways, made it a Naval Air Station, and turned the barracks into an officers’ club. When the war was over, an entrepreneur leased the building and rented space to small businesses. One of his tenants was Artie Cortis.

According to Jim, that landlord disappeared one day in 1981, owing something like $10,000 in taxes. All the tenants were locked out with no access to their businesses. Besides Artie’s print shop, there was a trucking company, an embroidery shop, and a sporting goods mail order business. There may have been a lawyer too, but Jim doesn’t recall for sure, which is understandable. I’d want to forget that too. In order to access his business, Artie paid the debt and took over management of the building. After renting the space for weddings and other special events, he realized he needed to offer a better option than the bathroom for the brides to get dressed. That’s when he converted his first room, which turned out to be the start of his hotel business. 

Jim helped his father for many years, and after he passed, Jim took over the family business. His dedication to the hotel is evident in its fourteen impeccable rooms. The cleanliness is, honestly, at a higher standard than the major chain we stayed in the night before. While the layout of the hotel is basically unchanged, he brought the interior up to date, yet without abandoning the charm of days past. 

Walking from the airplane, across the ramp, past the old Naval Air Station hangar, it wasn’t a long trek to the Pilot House. A spacious covered porch, painted white, welcomed us cozily, adorning the front of the two-story brick building. Chairs grouped around a table make a friendly statement. Through the wooden double doors, we entered the lobby with its glass cases of memorabilia. Jim met us, signed us in, and showed us to our accommodations, which included a bedroom, living room, and kitchen.

Fortunately, Jim’s son, whose degree is in business finance, wants to follow in his father and grandfather’s footsteps and has big plans for the hotel. We found the Pilot House at Grosse Ile a comfortable and friendly place to stay for our Michigan adventures. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 23, 2022 Pioneers of the Landscape

The Liberty Gazette

August 23, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

A native of Kansas, a state which produced many of our earliest aviators, Royal Vearl Thomas was the second child born to Frank and Lillie Thomas. We don’t know much about his childhood, but we can imagine, as we reflect on stories of other children of the same era who witnessed the birth of aviation, that he might have similarly been that boy who looked up to the sky as a barnstormer flew low over a wheat field and ran as fast as his little legs could carry him to see an airplane up close and the lucky person who had just landed it. He probably got one of those penny-a-pound rides in a biplane, and if he did, surely he was hooked right away. 

We do know that R.V., as he was called, was a Lieutenant in the armed forces during World War I. We also know that he and Giuseppe Bellanca built a monoplane they named “Reliance,” and in it, he set an endurance record in 1927 for flying solo for 35 hours, 25 minutes, and 8 seconds, at Mitchel Field in New York. 

Meanwhile, two brothers from Pittsburgh moved to Arizona seeking adventure in tourism, photography, and film, which were also new industries. Ellsworth and Emery Kolb set up a studio at the Bright Angel Trailhead on the south rim of the Grand Canyon and sold their nature photographs in albums and tickets to view their 1911 movie of floating down the Colorado River from Colorado to Mexico, through the Grand Canyon. It was the first motion picture of its kind.

And how these to stories come together is that one day, Ellsworth Kolb offered R.V. Thomas one hundred dollars if he could land in the Grand Canyon and allow Ellsworth to ride along and film it. As soon as the stunt was approved by the park manager, R.V. took a burro ride down to find a landing spot.

This month marks the 100th anniversary since R.V. made a studied and calculated, but daring, landing on a five-hundred-foot strip of level grass he found inside the Grand Canyon. To this day, he is the only person to do that in an airplane. 

It's an amazing story that caught a lot of attention. In his own “Thomas Special” biplane, R.V. battled the unique and unpredictable swirling air currents and put on a show the park guests would never forget. He climbed up above the canyon, then put his airplane in a stall and spun down fast, pulling out of the stall-spin in time to land it. He stopped within fifty feet of an 1,800-foot drop. Getting it out of there would be another feat of great skill and luck. 

There’s a digital copy of the news story on the National Park Service website, which is well worth your time. The author’s description of the event, the pioneering characters, and the scene are superb, still breathtaking even one hundred years later. Highly recommended reading.

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August 16, 2022 New Horizons

The Liberty Gazette

August 16, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

After becoming empty-nesters, William Bartz and his wife, Katie, of Mont Belvieu, looked forward to more freedom, especially travel. So, when William was laid off from his job in oil and gas, it seemed the perfect time to get serious about learning to fly. He wasted no time starting his journey to a new career as a professional pilot. Within two months, William earned his private pilot certificate, a major accomplishment. He has already taken the written exams for his instrument and instrument instructor ratings; he's on a fast-track at ATP flight school at Ellington, a great place to learn to fly with a variety of air traffic – military, corporate, occasional airline, students, and NASA. 

His schedule is intense, studying and flying seven days a week. It’s been a while since he was in school, so the challenge is exhilarating. He feels sharper, engaging his brain to such a degree. And William’s no slouch. With a mathematics degree and a background in finance and business development, he’s done a fair amount of learning. But this is new and different, and he’s giving it all he’s got. 

“There’s so much to learn about flying,” he says. “Like the illusions of night flying. They’re real! Learning to land at night is completely different. And weather. I look at the sky and find myself analyzing what’s happening in the atmosphere. I have names for what I see now that I hadn’t known before. And I was surprised to learn that even here in Southeast Texas, where it’s hot, there can be ice at higher altitudes.”

He’s fascinated by flight. Aeronautical engineering has captivated his sense of wonder. When he considers a certain part of an aircraft, such as the pitot tube, he wonders, how did someone think of that? Imagine inventing a way to detect air pressure and provide a read-out instrument, so a pilot knows the altitude of the aircraft. These are the kinds of things William contemplates with awe. 

All the firsts are amazing. “The first time I took off,” he adds, “my first landing, first solo, I thought, ‘I just did that! I can do this! Why not?’” He can see his skills improving, and it’s incredibly satisfying to grease a landing. Especially if it’s in a crosswind. And it has led to increased confidence. 

He’s looking forward to being in control of a large jet aircraft, to having a career that depends fully on his performance, and now he knows he can do it. His end goal is a career that will allow him and Katie to travel. While that may be an airline job, William is open to the options. Besides, he owes her a trip to Italy, after that snafu on their honeymoon when they landed in London, with his passport expiring in less than six months.

“But,” he laughs, “a more immediate goal these days is flying an airplane with air conditioning.”

Here’s to the exciting journey ahead, William. May your new horizons be full of blue skies.

 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 9, 2022 The Results Are In!

The Liberty Gazette

August 9, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: Last month we spilled the beans about ordering coffee from four small businesses selling aviation-themed java, and we promised to let you know how it all poured out. Here it is. 

Mike: We’re not tasting experts, but it might be fair to call us coffee snobs. We also believe in supporting small businesses, which means our support excludes what one pundit described as “a ‘social justice’ company that just happens to sell overpriced, burnt coffee.”

All of the coffees that arrived on our doorstep provided a good experience. We may have our favorites, but taste is individual. The choice of fine, medium, or course grind, and the ratio of coffee to water, will also lie with the consumer, as will the brewing method (we medium-grind and use a drip coffee maker). Therefore, please take all variables into consideration.

From these four companies, we ordered seven different coffees on the internet on the same evening, July 5. The first to arrive was a bag of whole beans from Aviation Coffee, in Havana, Illinois. This was their Brazil Cerrado, which is a light roast. The beans released an inviting aroma when I ground them, and the coffee has a nice, stable flavor. A neat plus is that this company is owned by a husband and wife who are both pilots.

Linda: The next to arrive was “Blend 172, First Flight,” from JetFuel Coffee, in Orlando, Florida. They really delivered on their promise. This organic Arabica is sweet, spicy, and rich. Makes for a good morning pre-flight start. This one well suits my preference for an exciting light roast. 

Mike: The next one to find its way to us was the Lost Aviator. We ordered four different kinds, and we can confirm that we found great coffee. Their light roast, “Aurora,” has a rich, full flavor, and the aroma from grinding the beans is out of this world. Their Kenya single-origin medium roast, “Destinations,” and “Prohibition Roast,” a barrel-aged Brazilian dark roast, are so unique, it’s tough to decide which I like better.

Linda: Lost Aviator, from Guelph, Ontario also has a medium roast, “Constellation,” which fit into the category of a good classic taste. I, too, love “Destinations.” It’s low acidity and full-bodied, with notes of toasted nuts and plum. “Prohibition Roast,” with gifts of whiskey for both nose and palette, is like nothing I’ve had before.

The last to arrive came all the way from Vancouver, British Columbia. Threshold Coffee’s medium roast (no fancy name) is just as they advertise, a rich, classic taste and vibe. Plus, a portion of our purchase went to charity.

A word about customer experience: Ordering was quick and easy from all four companies. An extra boost goes to Threshold because the shipping company damaged the first package, and in rapid response, they rushed to roast a second bag for us and shipped it out pronto, with excellent communication. 

Conclusion: You can’t go wrong with any of these. Order at aviation-coffee.com, jetfuelcoffee.co, lostaviatorcoffee.com, and thresholdcoffee.co.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 2, 2022 A Runway Engraved

The Liberty Gazette

August 2, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Mike: We were on approach to the Savanah/Hilton Head International Airport when my co-pilot commented that we might see a ghost. When I asked why, he replied that people were buried in the runway. What? After touchdown, we slowed to a crawl and two headstones on the north side of the runway came into view. I thought it was a joke, but the embedded graves are real. In fact, they are even included in professional aircraft simulator graphics.

Richard Dotson was born March of 1797. Catherine Smith was exactly five weeks older. The couple met, courted, and married in 1820. They bought farmland in what was then known as Cherokee Hills, in Chatham County, Georgia, and in 1833, their son Sampson was born. He blessed his parents with four grandchildren, who begat many more generations. It seems that sense of honor and respect for their ancestors was instilled throughout the family tree. Catherine passed away in 1877, and Richard joined her seven years later. They were buried side-by-side in the family cemetery on their farm they toiled over and loved.

In the Golden Age of Aviation, Chatham Field airport was built on the neighboring land. And 58 years after Richard had passed, when our country was steeped in World War II, the federal government included Chatham Field in their expansion plans. By this time, the city of Savannah owned the property 

and leased 1,100 acres to the Army for a command base for training the heavy bombardment combat crew of the Army Air Corp’s second bomb wing. The land lease included the Dotson family cemetery. 

Now this kind of development is not unusual, and in most cases, the party doing the building pays to have remains moved to another cemetery. The only requirement is the approval of the next of kin. That’s what stopped the feds right in their tracks. The descendants agreed to moving the bodies of family, enslaved people, and employees from approximately 100 graves to the Bonaventure cemetery in Savannah. But there were four family members whose relocation they denied: Richard and Catherine, and two others, John Dotson and Daniel Hueston, who they knew would wish to rest forever on the land they worked. But we have to wonder just how restful a place it is these days.

When the Army Air Corps was ready to pour the concrete for the 9,351-foot runway, they had no choice but to place it over the Dotsons. B-24 “Liberators” and B-17 “Flying Fortresses” would be landing and taking off here in defense of freedom. 

Today, at the approach end of runway 10 at the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, formerly Chatham Field, are two grave markers: “Catherine Smith Dotson, born February 14, 1797, died November 23, 1877, age 80. Gone home to rest.” And “Richard Dotson, born March 21, 1797, died March 29, 1884, age 87. At rest.” John and Daniel are buried just off the runway. Family members can visit the graves but can’t leave any flowers.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

July 26, 2022 Cool Places

The Liberty Gazette

July 26, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Historic vacation spots are cool. Here’s one for fellow history lovers and aviation kindred spirits: The Grosse Ile Pilot House in Grosse Ile, Michigan (“Big Island,” named by creative French explorers in 1679). The Pilot House, now a hotel, was formerly the mess hall and dormitory for the U.S. Navy Reserves, which moved to the island in 1929, during the Golden Age of Aviation. 

Also at the Grosse Ile Air Field was the Aircraft Development Corporation, building an all-metal blimp, the ZMC-2. The Navy flew it for ten years before retiring it. And, the renowned aviation company, Curtiss-Wright, built gliders there and introduced them into the Navy’s training program at Grosse Ile. Life was so good that the Marines couldn’t let this place pass them up, so they brought a couple of units to the aviation base. 

Sadly, as we all know (and are marching toward a repeat), heading into the 1930’s, bad times were dumped on the citizenry of America the Beautiful. We all know who did this, and it’s the same worthless group inflicting harm today. They put the Curtiss-Wright facility out of business, which made the property ripe for takeover by the federal government. Nothing good about that, except that the Navy then built new runways and taxiways (which surely private enterprise could have and would have done eventually, had they not been sacked).

The airport emerged as a primary flight training base, where many Naval Aviators learned to fly before moving to Pensacola for advanced training. By the time we were nearing our involvement in the Second World War, 2,900 pilots had been accepted into the ramped-up training program in its first three months. Cadets came over from Great Britain, too, making Grosse Ile the leading training center, and by 1944, this place housed over 800 cadets from here and abroad, all learning to fly and to defend freedom in America and the world.

By VJ Day, however, when many training bases became ghost towns, the Navy implemented a postwar program at Grosse Ile, which kept the base going until 1969. That’s when the feds decided not to maintain military aviation training (peace out, man), and Grosse Ile Township took over and turned it into a civilian airport. Today, the airport beckons travelers to land on the little island that sits at the confluence of the Detroit River and Lake Erie.

Today, you can stay in the old Curtiss-Wright barracks. It was first renovated as the Pilot House in 1981, welcoming pilots, aviation enthusiasts, and others. They also host special events, such as weddings and banquets, on the upper floor, and you can see the original dance floor and two original fireplaces in the section that was the Officers’ Club.

If you hadn’t thought of a reason to visit Michigan, perhaps that will give you some incentive. It’s a cool place for your escape from this smothering heat and humidity. We hear the highs in Grosse Ile this week are in the low 80’s.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

July 19, 2022 A Jumpin' Good Time

The Liberty Gazette

July 19, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

It’s grand fun for us to spin our yarns for our neighbors here in Liberty and for folks around the world who follow this column on our blog. Last month, we celebrated 15 years of dropping words on this page like pilots drop skydivers. Good parachute jumpers know how to maneuver in the wind to land on a spot. They call it “in the peas.” Ask Chad “Jetboy” Hall. When Jetboy gets into something, it’s full-monty. 

It started when a co-worker invited him to Skydive Spaceland. He had done it once before, but this time, the bug bit. That day, he took two tandem jumps, went through ground school, and soloed by sunset. He became so hooked that he made 576 jumps the first year, earning his A, B, C, and D licenses, coach and pro exhibition ratings in that time. In his second year, he fell through the air 513 times. Of those, 200 were mentor jumps, where he helped others with 100 or fewer jumps.

While making a name for himself in the tight-knit skydiving community, he earned certification as an aerial videographer. He nailed the filming of the jump scene in the movie, “Narco Sub” in just one shot.

Other credits include video for George Bush’s funeral and former Houston Mayor Kathy Whitmire skydiving. His favorite though is filming tandem jumps (first-timers) and night jumping. He’s won over 40 medals in competition, most of them gold, and is a member of a world record holding team, “POPs,” Pops Over Phorty, the +40 skydivers.

Years ago, when he was flying radio-controlled airplanes, he was so enthusiastic that one guy called him Jetboy to make fun of him. Chad embraced it. He put it on his license plate, it’s his social media handle, it’s embroidered on his canopy (parachute), rig, and gloves. He even got Oakley to etch it into his sunglasses.

Today, he has 2,500 jumps to his credit, and he’s incredibly focused. He could land in a five-gallon bucket, which means landing on the 50-yard line at a football game is no problem. Like when he touched down and delivered the game balls at a school off loop 610. Piercing Hobby’s airspace after a delay for a Boeing 737 made it all the more interesting. You may have seen him as part of the Re/Max team at Wings Over Houston. He’s also one of McNeese University’s “ParaPokes.”

He’s had some close calls, like the time his foot got temporarily stuck while jumping out. That was after the Florida ballot debacle in the 2000 elections, so he put a face to the whole “hanging Chad” thing. 

But skydiving isn’t all this engineer-by-trade has accomplished just in the last ten years. He also earned his private pilot certificate, bought an airplane, and has flown over 1,000 hours. He says that parachuting, that is, canopy flying, is “way more fun than airplane flying. Like a driving Corvette versus pushing your little brother in a cart.”

Wanna try jumping? Check out https://houston.skydivespaceland.com/.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com