June 20, 2023 Re-Settles

The Liberty Gazette

June 20, 2023

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

We got a hot tip on some cool digs, and it sounds like a perfect sky trip. Some friends from the airpark just returned from Big Spring after traversing the Permian Basin. It seems most of the hotels were full, but then they heard about a posh place downtown that had some vacancies. They found the price to their liking and decided to stay. 

They said you could see this place from a long way off as you come into Big Spring. It’s a fifteen-story art deco hotel built in 1930 by a man named W. R. Settles who owned some land upon which oil was discovered. Settles bought the property at West Third Street and Runnels and built his hotel, which opened in October 1930 with great fanfare, a place to rival any five-star New York hotel. But the Great Depression zapped Settles’ fortunes, and within two years, he was bankrupt and had to sell. The property changed hands many times after that, and in 1980 the Settles dream came to an end when the doors closed for good. The building was trashed by vagrants and became an eyesore. 

Cue Brint Ryan, native son of Big Spring, now a rock star of CPAs, who made his fortune after moving to Dallas and working as a tax accountant and became world renown. He purchased Hotel Settles in 2006 and invested a small fortune ($30 million to a billionaire is nothing) in returning it to its original 1930’s opulence. Ryan reopened the hotel in December 2012 with a great celebration. Each floor has only five rooms, or more appropriately, suites. And it isn’t that far out of the price range of the Hilton Garden Inn or Holiday Inn Express.

We have landed in Big Spring a number of times. However, those were just refueling stops as we headed west. We are now thinking of taking time to explore those hidden jewels of the western part of the state and might push back at the winds to Big Spring for a weekend getaway. This may even be a candidate for another fly-and-bike trip. From a satellite image, it looks like we can ride our bikes from the McMahon-Wrinkle Airport on the southwest side of Big Spring, and staying off I-20, meander about four miles into town, past the state park, maybe stop in at H-E-B for an energy bar, and make it to the magnificent, storied hotel in half an hour.

Best-selling novelist Bryan Mealer, also sprung from Big Spring, wrote the most beautiful piece on the history of Hotel Settles in Texas Monthly magazine shortly after Ryan re-opened the hotel. You can find Bryan’s article on the internet by going to the magazine’s website and searching “Up with the Old Hotel.” From its fabulous past, through its era of shame, to its crumbling decay past the point of no return, to its shocking rebirth that spread hope for a future for the town mourning it, Hotel Settles is beckoning us. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

June 13, 2023 48N48

The Liberty Gazette

June 13, 2023

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

We recently wrote about John Cook and Rob Timm, who set a world record back in 1959 that still stands: flying consistently for 64 days, 22 hours, and 19 minutes, a publicity stunt for a hotel. Since Guinness World Records offers many opportunities for people to make or break records by offering a wide variety of categories, there’s plenty of room for more.

That’s probably what stoked Barry Behnfeldt when he heard that two pilots had once tried to land in all lower 48 states of the United States within 48 hours. They didn’t make their goal, but the idea landed well in Barry’s brain. He could do this to promote aviation and benefit Veteran’s Airlift Command, which provides free, private air transportation to our combat injured veterans for medical or other compassionate purposes through a national network of volunteer aircraft owners and pilots.

Barry started flying at age 16 near his family’s home in Henry County, Ohio. He was working his way toward a civilian pilot career when he thought he’d like to see more of the world. The Air Force was a little slow to get it together, and after talking with a Navy recruiter, he decided that landing on an aircraft carrier sounded like a lot of fun. He flew F-18s for 17 years – a real-life Top Gun – with a total of 30 years in the Navy. Today, he is a captain with Delta Airlines. 

Barry also owns a personal airplane, a six-seat 1980 Piper Saratoga, which he thought would be an excellent choice for claiming that record, 48 states in 48 hours. He hosted a happy hour at his home, where he made his first presentation to friends. They agreed to help him in various ways, but he still needed a co-pilot and a mechanic. At Delta, Barry had flown with Aaron Wilson on several trips and was impressed by his skill, professionalism, and personality. Aaron, an Air Force veteran flying the C-17, and a fellow alumni of Bowling Green State University’s aviation program, would make the perfect co-pilot for this endeavor. The choice for mechanic was easy. Barry knew Tom Twiddy from the Navy, another 30-year career guy. Tom had wrenched on aircraft for many years and already knew Barry’s Saratoga as it’s primary care-giver for maintenance and annual inspections. 

The trio researched the rules laid out by Guinness and the FAA, studied the weather, and decided on the best route (5,008 nautical miles). They took off from Andrews University Airpark in Berrien Springs, Michigan, on June 4 and after 46 more landings, finally touched down at Sanford Seacoast Regional Airport in Sanford, Maine, 44 hours and 16 minutes later.

To earn the record, they had to get signatures from someone at each airport, the coordination of which was quite an effort. The longest leg was an hour and 34 minutes; the shortest was 9 minutes. 

For more on their exciting journey, and to learn more about Veteran’s Airlift Command, go to 48N48.org. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

June 6, 2023 A Miracle

The Liberty Gazette

June 6, 2023

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: Today, our grandson Myles turns 21. We call it a miracle. Born with a rare form of Severe Combined Immune Deficiency, a/k/a the “boy in the bubble disease,” he had no functioning immune system. By the time he was 10, two bone marrow transplants had failed, and while preparing for the third, lymphoma popped up for the second time, postponing the transplant. 

We gathered photos of head-shaving parties held by friends and family around the world and put them together for an inspiring YouTube video, “Shaved Heads for Myles,” with Indiana University’s a cappella group, Straight No Chaser, singing “Stand by Me.” 

Our family took turns staying with Myles in the hospital or with his younger siblings at home. There was something special about staying with Myles. He loves to tease, especially doctors and hospital staff. It was one way he combatted exhaustion, pain, boredom, and sorrow over friends who didn’t make it, as he fought on. 

Between treatments, we did schoolwork, Bible study, built Legos, and watched movies. Over Thanksgiving, he chose Spider-Man, The Avengers, and just for me, Red Tails.

The next day, his doctor gave him a four-hour pass, so we went to the local airport. I took him out to our airplane and buckled him in for a flight. We did several touch-and-goes, staying in the traffic pattern because he couldn’t go anywhere else yet. We looked for his doctor’s house in the neighborhoods below. With Red Tails fresh on our minds, we scanned the sky for enemy planes. Turning toward our imaginary prey, we pretended to press a trigger on the yoke, and rolled our R’s as our tongues vibrated the roofs of our mouths: “BRRRRRAAPTT!” And I saw him smile. Not just from his lips, but from his whole being beamed happiness, as he gazed out the window taking in the view from aloft. It thrilled my soul, and I will always be grateful. Plus, it gave him a unique story to tell back at the hospital. 

Preparing his medications, his nurse asked over her shoulder, “How was your pass today? What did you do?” 

He shrugged. “Nothing.” 

I glared at him in disbelief. “Excuse me?”

His lips barely curled as he tried to restrain a smirk. He held his composure as much to taunt me as to harass the nurse, who turned suddenly from her work. “Sounds like you have something to tell!”

Myles replied offhandedly, like a cool dude, “It was good.” Then the grin broke through and he shrugged to maintain the cool: “I went flying with Nanny.”

Myles was discharged several months earlier than expected. While the first 100 days post-transplant are critical, he did remarkably well, allowing him to be in isolation at home rather than the hospital. 

We sent thank-you cards and a Superman cape through the National Marrow Donor Program to the anonymous young man in Germany who donated his healthy bone marrow. This hero’s gift saved our grandson’s life.

Today, Myles is a junior in college, a champion weightlifter, a gifted artist, a motivational speaker, and is writing a book. And now he’s 21. A miracle.

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

May 31, 2023 Non-Stop for How Long?

The Liberty Gazette

May 31, 2023

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: Our recent trip to the Pacific Northwest totaled 36 hours in the air. Not all at once, mind you. We took breaks. We stopped before night fall. We stretched our legs, eliminated excess water loads, and switched seats at each fuel stop. We weren’t in a hurry – we were on vacation – and we weren’t looking to break any endurance records. If we had wanted to try that, we’d have had to fly consistently for more than 64 days, 22 hours, and 19 minutes. I cannot even imagine desiring that badge. Apparently, there aren’t too many other takers either. 

The record was set by John Cook and Rob Timm back in 1959. What in the world made them strive for such a title? Well, three years prior, Mr. Timm, a former WWII fighter pilot, got a job repairing slot machines at the Hacienda hotel in Las Vegas. The hotel was new, one of the first family-oriented resorts in the mostly non-family-oriented city. The owner was pondering ways to publicize his venture and liked Timm’s idea: paint the business’s name on an airplane and fly around over the city for a long time, breaking the flight endurance record, which was, at that time, 47 days. The record had been held for seven years when the boss agreed to the wild idea. After all, he wasn’t going to be the one who had to sit in an airplane for that long. He only had to come up with the money to pay for it.

Rob Timm modified a Cessna 172 (a four-seat airplane driven by a single propeller) to make the attempt as comfortable as possible. He would have a co-pilot and they’d take turns flying. He put in a mattress, a small, metal sink, a camp toilet, and an autopilot. The latter of these worked when it was most needed, when Timm fell asleep at the wheel for about an hour. But it broke a few days later. 

They figured they could refuel without stopping by installing an extra fuel tank to be filled as necessary. To accomplish this, they descended to just feet above the ground and flew the airplane as slow as it could go and still be airborne while a truck drove along underneath, and someone handed up a hose and turned on the pump. They took the opportunity to send up supplies at the same time, like mashed-up meals in a thermos and a quart of water every other day for bathing. On the 39th day, the refueling pump broke, so they manually filled the tank during the remainder of the record flight. In the end, lots of things were broken, like the fuel gauge and cabin heater, but the engine was going strong.

No word on how many bookings were made as a result of this stunt, but after almost 65 days of virtual inactivity, the men had to be carried out of the airplane. We’ll stick to our routine of landing every couple of hours.

*Photo credit: Howard W. Cannon Aviation Museum 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com