August 30, 2011 Warbirds on Parade

The Liberty Gazette

August 30, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely



Photo courtesy DFW Wing CAF

Linda: Lancaster, 20 minutes from downtown Dallas, is home to a busy community airport. The International Aerobatic Club has contests there and this spring the locals hosted their first air race. It’s also home to the DFW Wing of the Commemorative Air Force (CAF). This Saturday, September 3, you’re all invited to the Lancaster airport for the annual Warbirds on Parade. This year promises to be even bigger and better; just ask Charlie Wood, a man in the know. Come see WW11 Bombers, Fighters, Cargoes, Trainers, L-Birds, Communist Mig 21, 23, Hind 24, Hind 2 Helicopters, L-39's, L-29's, “and a few surprises.” There will be nearly 100 classic cars, along with military vehicle and equipment displays. Re-enactors and living history groups will take you back in time - they’ll have their communication gear and may be calling in air strikes - let the kids come and see that cell phones haven’t always been in existence. And don't miss the restored farm tractors and tractor pull, and the “Hit & Miss Engine Display.” WW11 Marine Veteran, R.V Burgin, author of "Island of the Damned" will be selling and autographing his book. His character appeared in episodes 5,6,7,8,9,10, of the HBO series, "The Pacific." They’d like a donation of $10 per car or $5 per person because it costs a lot to keep this show running.



BT15 Photo courtesy DFW Wing CAF

It’s a lot of hard work, but Charlie can’t be happier about the event’s success. They’ll be setting up all day Friday and will be back before daylight. A former DFW Wing leader, Charlie will get to the airport about 5 a.m. Saturday “and there will already be about 300 people there,” he laughs. Last year he served 85 pounds of barbeque, plus hot dogs. This year he expects to serve more. “We’ll all be dead tired but will have a smile on our face.”



R4D Photo courtesy DFW Wing CAF



What drives Charlie Wood and others like him to dedicate their time and resources? “We need to educate these children,” he says. “The CAF teaches about the sacrifices and suffering, and that freedom isn’t free. We fly exhibitions in remembrance and to honor those who flew and protected our freedom.”



 Mike: The 8,000 member CAF boasts ownership of 160 WWII airplanes, seen by at least 10 million people a year. “We give them a history lesson and these are the tools,” Charlie says.


Photo courtesy
Raymond Jeffcoat, DFW Wing CAF

He’s only 61, but he feels an obligation to an older generation. He did not serve in the military; this is his way to pay back. He’s “just a hometown boy who tries to make a difference.” One of his grandmothers worked in the North American plant where T-6s and P51s and bomber sections were built. His other grandmother worked at the Johnny Mitchell Company, a cotton-gin-builder-turned-war-ordinance maker for anti-aircraft guns (armament on ships). “The country came together. Everybody did something for the war effort and that’s why we have freedom today,” he says. So he flies in air shows and does his part to educate and honor. It’s not uncommon, but deeply meaningful, each time an elderly man walks up to Charlie and starts telling his story. “I’m privileged to hear it at the same time his family is hearing it, with a tear in his eye.”

Go to www.DFWWing.com or call Charlie at (972) 287-6228. 

"Ziggy" Stinson L3 Photo courtesy DFW Wing CAF

http://www.elyairlines.blogspot.com/

August 23, 2011 The only way to fly

The Liberty Gazette

August 23, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Mike: Just the little unpainted Grumman Cheetah and me, winging our way back from Indianapolis following The Indy Air Race; she may be an ugly duckling now, but after a new paint job, er, make-over, she will be stunning.

The large storms we encountered en route were circumnavigatable, and when the Elyminator began to feel thirsty, she brought me to a small airport in Newport, Arkansas. Her thirst quenched, I saddled back up and we climbed out past Little Rock, contacting approach control for traffic advisories on the way into Houston. Passing east of Shreveport well above the haze layer the sun was setting, reflecting a host of hues through the prisms of raindrops and ice crystals in the lower layers of the clouds to the west. An intricate symphony for the eyes, a vast gourmet setting so awe inspiring one can’t help but want to share it. Alas, photos from a cell phone camera can’t convey what my eyes soaked in. That beautiful view of colors suspended in the atmosphere is reserved for those who escape the bonds of gravity, separated from the ground by a mile or more of air molecules, as we were, the Elyminator and I.

From wheels up at Indianapolis Executive Airport to wheels down at Ellington Field, total time to travel, including the fuel stop, was accomplished in seven hours. Not only did I marvel at the scenery, I was also not inconvenienced with having to go through a security line and being subjected to a head-to-toe search for whatever they look for. I simply loaded up, climbed in, and blasted off. Even with the high price of fuel these days, the bottom line comes out about the same as a round trip airline ticket–without the hassle and with the wondrous exhibition of God’s pageantry of color. To make the same trip by airliner would require arrival at the main airport at least an hour before departure, with likely one or two leg transfers at Chicago, Atlanta or somewhere. Add to that the time it takes for the rigmarole of checking bags and picking them up at baggage claim at the other end; one could easily spend more time journeying by airline than I did flying myself. The only direct flight offered by one airline cost more than I paid in fuel and with it I would still have had to endure the federal government’s impositions on airline passengers.

A contrasting scene from airline travel, as I taxied to the hangar a couple of friends in an adjacent hangar stopped working on their airplanes to come out and greet me and helped tuck in the Elyminator. Our version of “baggage claim” was pulling my car up to the airplane and unloading my bags. In a few minutes I was on my way home with no lines, no hassles, and for less than the price of an airline ticket. As an old Western Airlines ad used to say “It’s the only way to fly.”

Linda: And, it sure beats driving. The race in Indy went very well, especially for a first-time race, and in spite of a first-time race director. More on that another day. Until then, blue skies.

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 16, 2011 Big Reputation in a Small World

The Liberty Gazette

August 16, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Linda: At the center of the city of Indianapolis the road forms a circle, Monument Circle, where four downtown streets provide access to make the round-about drive. In the center is a war memorial monument, and around the perimeter are a fancy restaurant, hotel, some high rise business offices, and, of course, a Starbucks. Emmitt Broadcasting takes up a fair piece of Circle real estate, including four radio stations and a magazine. It kind of reminded me of the TV stations in New York, where folks walking the circle can listen to the live broadcast and see inside through the ground level windows into the studios of WIBC Radio, the largest station in Central Indiana. The popular evening radio host, Denny Smith, invited me to join him on his show the Wednesday before The Indy Air Race, to talk about the excitement of air racing – something new to the auto racing capital of the world.

After we finished the show, my sister, niece and nephew and I went to grab coffee drinks. Enjoying the cool evening temperatures, chatting about airplanes and radio and other fun things, we noticed a group of high school aged kids go into the coffee shop. All but one, that is. One young man stood outside, and then turned to my nephew and asked him to clap twice. Good thing he did. It turns out the game was that the boy couldn’t go inside with his friends until he could get someone to clap. Twice. That silly little game opened the door to conversation. We noticed one young man was carrying a trumpet, so we asked what they were doing, where they were from.

The really nice group of kids said they were from Texas and were there to compete in a world drum corps competition.

I soon discovered they were from the San Antonio and San Marcos areas. One young man had worn his shoes out so much they had come apart at the seams, at least the full front half of them. These kids had to come up with $1,800 each for this trip. We talked about where they’d been, the competitions, and the fun they’re having, when one of them mentioned Hardin, Texas.

Two things these kids said stood out about being in Hardin in July this year. One was the sweltering heat. The other was the generous spirit of the people. As these youngsters had to earn their own way to the competition, they became impressed with the people of Hardin, who, they told us, had purchased so many t-shirts and other items from them and donated more money so that little Hardin, Texas became the one place that has supported their group more than any other place they’ve been.

Two important lessons in meeting these kids are that it’s a small world, and that a reputation can go far and wide, whether it is a person, a school, a sports team, a business, or a community. These were pleasant, friendly, polite teenagers, who were fun to visit with, and who spoke highly of one generous small town in Liberty County, Texas, that will remain in their memories for years to come.

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 9, 2011 The Indy Air Race

The Liberty Gazette

August 9, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Mike: Saturday August 13 will witness “The Indy Air Race,” a new event in Indiana. Airplanes will test their metal against the clock as they course their way around six turn points through Central Indiana on a cross-country course of 144.5 nautical miles.

So far, eighteen airplanes are registered for this weekend’s event. Traditionally, several entries come in days prior to any race as pilots nail down their personal schedules and check weather forecasts closer to race day.

If all goes well this will also be the first time our Cheetah has raced since we began our engine overhaul and aerodynamic upgrades several months ago. It still needs a paint job but thanks to our mechanical genius friend and rescuer in Crandall, Texas, it will be ready to race. Someday we may write about the challenges we’ve encountered along the way but for now, we are happy to be airborne once again.

Linda: Hosting an air race in Indy was an idea born out of conversations Mike and I had when the Chief of the Sport Air Racing League, Mike Thompson, said he would like to see the League grow to areas where air racing hasn’t been yet. Indy, my hometown, was at the top of our short list of airports that meet certain requirements for hosting an air race.

Last year at a race in the Tennessee Valley, the Chief and I discussed the idea of a race in Indy. Liking the idea he wondered if we could organize a race long distance. I felt it was possible because I have lots of family and friends (volunteers) there. A few phone calls later and great help from my mom and sister, somehow it all came together.

Among the airplanes entered are several really fast Experimental/Homebuilt aircraft. Lynn Farnsworth, a Reno air racer and war hero will lead the pack at the start in his souped-up Lancair Legacy.

We’ll be on the air on WIBC radio in Indianapolis either Wednesday or Thursday evening at 6:00pm Central time, streaming live at www.WIBC.com. The host, Denny Smith, who is also a pilot, was so excited when he received an email from my sister regarding the race that he immediately scheduled us for his show – great promotion for the race, and for the League.

My sister’s hosting the pre-race party Friday night, where there will be plenty of food, socializing, and fun. A shooting range is on the property and I just ordered a large inflatable outdoor movie screen. The air race movies I bought should go over very well with this crowd.

The racers and volunteers will take a special tour of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway the day before the race, and on race day when the airplanes enter the runway to start their take-off roll, they will be given the green flag by veteran Indy 500 race driver Bob Harkey, himself a pilot.

The hosting FBO, Montgomery Aviation, will serve a pancake breakfast and hot dogs after the race, and has discounted their fuel price for our racers. The Montgomerys have also pitched in as sponsors toward the cost of t-shirts and trophies, to supplement our main sponsor, Aerodine Composites, who has been quite generous in support of our race.

As a first-time Race Director, I’m indebted to a great bunch of volunteers, sponsors, and hosts, and am excitedly looking forward to Saturday’s race.

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

August 2, 2011 Texas History Fly-Ins

The Liberty Gazette

August 2, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Mike: On the dusty, dry western edge of the Texas Hill Country sits the city of Menard, and a significant place of Texas history, the Spanish Presidio San Sabá. Built in 1757, the presidio served a three-fold purpose: to protect the nearby Mission Santa Cruz de San Sabá, to find the silver they’d heard about, and to guard the Spanish frontier. The Presidio is one of nine forts along the Texas Forts Trail, a recommended driving trail.

Linda: Surely you realize we’re not history experts, so this must have something to do with airplanes. We thank Elizabeth Cooper who, as a Texas Tech anthropology grad student wrote a fantastic piece on the reconstruction efforts she was involved with at the time (www.texasbeyondhistory.net/presidio). Since publication of her informative online exhibit there has been more restoration work. What caught our attention was that it’s being promoted as a “Fly-In.”

During a Liberty-Dayton Chamber luncheon we explained to local business folks how valuable our airport is and inventive ways it can be used to bring people to town. Similar to our suggestions about advertising events in Liberty as fly-in destinations, like-minded advocates in Menard posted this: “Wing your way to the Frontier Fly-In, to Menard, Texas to see the restoration of the Spanish Presidio San Saba in progress.” Great marketing for the town, the restoration project, and the airport!

Mike: The presidio, located 300 yards south of Menard County Airport, was at the time of its occupation the only Spanish stronghold on an otherwise unoccupied frontier. It was the largest and most important military installation in Texas at that time, home to more than 300 Spanish soldiers and civilians. Some call it "the ruin of ruins." Elizabeth Cooper wrote, “The story of Presidio San Sabá is the story of Texas,” and invites readers to imagine soldiers practicing drills in the courtyard while herders tend cattle and farmers work nearby fields, to catch a whiff of fresh-baked bread and meat roasting on a spit, or hear children playing in the courtyard.

Those involved in the present restoration project are offering free transportation to fly-ins, inviting you to call (325-456-5994) for a private guided tour, observe the ruins as they are restored to original beauty, and see the authentic Jim “Bouie” signature carved in stone. Their fly-in invitation boasts of excellent area restaurants and sounds just downright friendly. It’s a superb example of what we encourage Liberty area businesses to do: make good use of your community airport; it’s an asset.

Linda: Another Texas history fly-in is “Flights of Our Fathers Fly-In” sponsored by the British Flying Training School Museum at Terrell Municipal Airport, September 16-18. I was there in June for an air race and can say, that museum is well worth the trip. In this year’s theme a salute to veterans honors the valor of our fallen heroes, including the ultimate sacrifice of five men from Terrell. The weekend events occur within a reunion of the men who were trained there. On September 16 there’s a hanger/dinner dance. September 17 is the fly-in with talks by Tom Killebrew, author of “The Royal Air Force in Texas,” and Dr. Calvin Spann, WWII Tuskegee Airman, static displays, and plane rides. The weekend will conclude with a Memorial Service September 18. Open to the public, drive-ins encouraged. Contact Beverly Mardis 972-524-1714, or bmardis@bftsmuseum.org. Their website: http://www.bftsmuseum.org.

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

July 26, 2011 Final Space Shuttle Mission

The Liberty Gazette

July 26, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Linda: Seagulls and pelicans crisscross and dive for fish in the Intercoastal Waterway until, suddenly, tranquility is ripped apart as a flash of light, eardrum-shattering blast, and earth shaking vibrations reverberate from 8.8 million pounds of thrust rocketing the Space Shuttle Atlantis into orbit at 17,500 mph. The thunder continues until the shuttle disappears from sight and all that is left is the dissipating plume of smoke, and wonderment and tears in the eyes that witnessed this final ascent.

Mike: Thursday, July 21, 2011 was an historical day. Space Shuttle Atlantis touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida ending a 13 day resupply mission to the International Space Station. Sadly this ended more than an era. There will be no more space flights for the orbiter. Once all the dangerous fluids are removed and it is somewhat cleaned up, Atlantis will remain at Kennedy on public display.

Space Shuttle Endeavour will be on display in the California Science Center in Los Angeles, not far from where she was created. The Space Shuttles were built by Rockwell International in Downey, California with final assembly in Palmdale, near Edwards Air Force Base.

Space Shuttle Discovery, the only surviving original shuttle to go into space will replace the Space Shuttle Enterprise, the orbiter prototype which never actually went into space, at the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in Washington D.C.

Space Shuttle Enterprise will be moved from Washington D.C. to New York City’s floating aircraft carrier museum, the USS Intrepid, the recovery ship for Aurora-7 and Gemini-3 space flight missions back in 1963 and 1965 respectively. New York claims the Enterprise once flew over the city in 1983 while conducting upper atmospheric tests.

At Johnson Space Center in Houston, no Orbiters will be placed on display and the shuttle simulators and associated equipment are to be divvied out to other museums across the country. In what seems a direct slap, two seats from one of the earlier Space Shuttle missions are the only items to remain for display in Houston – Space City.

Linda: This makes 135 Space Shuttle missions over the past 30 years, Atlantis having flown 32 of them. While the 12 year project to assemble the components of the International Space Station is currently the most visible achievement of the shuttle program, there have been a multitude of others, less visible. We’ve benefitted from the technology developed out of the program with over 100 different technical advances. From the development of light weight fuel pumps came a light weight (less than 4 ounces) heart pump in use today. From the leak detection system developed for the shuttle, a commercially viable vehicle was developed with natural gas as its fuel. Fly-By-Wire and Drive-By-Wire technology used in today’s vehicles decreasing weight and increasing fuel efficiency came directly from the shuttle program. And don’t forget the Hubble Telescope and the 180 other satellites launched into orbit from the shuttles.

Mike: Only 37 of the 135 missions were dedicated to the International Space Station’s construction; but it would never have been built without it. Commercial space travel is being encouraged and resupply missions are being taken over by the Russians. Until the U.S. becomes a leader again the future of space travel will remain in question, but shuttle Commander Christopher Ferguson offered these uplifting words: “America’s not going to stop exploring.”
www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

July 19, 2011 Mel Hemann, Flying Priest

The Liberty Gazette 

July 19, 2011 

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely 

Linda: There’s so much going on in the aviation industry that sometimes choosing a topic to share here can be difficult, but I read a story recently about a priest who has earned a big award.

Mel Hemann and two of his three brothers are priests. All four of the Hemann men are pilots: Mel, John, Everett, and Matt. Last week Melvin received the prestigious Wright Brothers Master Pilot award for over 50 years of safe piloting. Mel is 82 and from a little Iowa town called Stacyville, where he and his brothers grew up on a farm – with a landing strip. Flying is second to his faith, but it’s a passionate second. This award also earns him recognition in the FAA’s Roll of Honor in Washington, D.C.

The story that appeared in Iowa’s Globe Gazette stated Melvin has logged nearly 17,000 hours of flight time, and an astounding 11,000 hours of flight instruction given. His family, friends, former students, and even the FAA pulled off quite a surprise to honor him for his 50-plus years of “professionalism, skill and aviation expertise.”

And here’s something I learned: there is an association just for flying priests! The association of flying farmers we wrote about a few weeks ago is no surprise, after all, crop dusters have been around since the early days of flight. One of the Hemann brothers, Matt, is a flying farmer. And there are associations of flying physicians and flying musicians. But flying priests? Yep, sure enough, it’s called the National Association of Priest Pilots (NAPP), and their 48th annual meeting was held last week in Mason City, Iowa. And that’s how and where they surprised Melvin with the award.

Mike: So for 48 years priest-pilots have been gathering to share their common loves of priesthood and flying. That means their organization began even before The Flying Nun, starring Sally Field. Of course, I had to check the Internet to see if there was a Flying Nun association, but nope, none. But I did find this quote from the Vatican, dated September 29, 1964: “It is with paternal satisfaction that the Holy Father views the efforts of the members of the National Association of Priest Pilots to encourage the use of air transportation to obtain ever more abundant spiritual fruits from their sacerdotal ministry and missionary apostolate.”

Their mission: “To promote the use of private aircraft as a practical, safe, and efficient tool of the apostolic work of a priest; To cooperate with other aviation and ecclesiastical groups wherever possible in order to promote aviation in the cause of the Church; To insist on the safe and proficient use of the airplane by its members; To encourage the use of private aircraft as worthy of the talents and dignity of priests; To further the use of aircraft in the missions.”

It totally makes sense. They’re mission pilots, they’re businessmen using business aircraft – for the business of Church.

Mel Hemann told the reporter from KIMT television in Mason City, Iowa that, "if Jesus was living today he'd use TV, he'd use radio, and the internet, and if he wanted to go somewhere he'd use a car or a plane, so it's trying to incorporate a thing that's not only a hobby but also it's something that can be very practical in doing what we're called to do."

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

July 12, 2011 ATC's 75th Anniversary

The Liberty Gazette

July 12, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Linda: The press release from Washington hit my inbox a few days ago heralding the 75th anniversary of federal air traffic control. Our nation's Air Traffic Control system has grown from just three air traffic control centers, housing a total of 15 workers in 1936 to 313 federally operated air traffic control facilities housing more than 15,000 workers. There are also control towers staffed by contract employees. Conroe is one example.

Those 15 original employees worked in Newark, Chicago, and Cleveland. Looking back at how air traffic control first operated underscores the tremendous advancements made in safety, speed, and economy. Controllers back then took radio position reports from pilots to plot the progress of each flight. They were not yet providing separation services (separation between airplanes). In fact, they didn’t even speak directly to the pilots flying the airplanes. At the time, the fastest plane in the commercial fleet was the Douglas DC-3, which could fly coast-to-coast in about 17 hours carrying 21 passengers. Today’s air traffic controllers not only provide separation services but do so for an average of 50,000 flights per day.

The DC-3 can comfortably claim its place in history. One of my all-time favorites, it is a real work horse and deserves respect as a great airplane. But speed up we have, and today’s jet airliners can carry hundreds of passengers and fly from Los Angeles to New York in about five hours, improving efficiency (as long as you don’t count the time it takes to get to the airport, park, stand in line and be accosted by the TSA).

Mike: But back to the early days. As with all good ideas, the necessity of some sort of organization to air traffic led to the development of local air traffic control before the federal government jumped on board. By 1926 legislation authorized the Department of Commerce to “establish air traffic rules…for the prevention of collisions between vessels and aircraft.” The first rules were brief and basic: pilots were not to begin their takeoff until “there is no risk of collision with landing aircraft and until preceding aircraft are clear of the field.”
Apparently a little more direction was needed. Procedures to control local air traffic began in 1929 at an airport in St. Louis, Missouri. A person would stand at the end of the runway using colored flags to communicate advisories to pilots. Flags were replaced by light guns, which are still required to be available for use in control towers today in the event of radio failure.

As aircraft were fitted for radio communication, airport traffic control towers began replacing the flagmen with radio operators. In 1930, the first radio-equipped control tower in the United States began operating at the Cleveland, Ohio Municipal Airport. Within the next five years about 20 radio control towers were in use and almost all airline aircraft had radio-telephone communication, although direct communication between pilots and controllers was still to come. En route airline crews communicated via radio with their company dispatchers who would in turn call the air traffic controllers, who tracked the position of planes using maps and blackboards and little boat-shaped weights.

From flagmen on the ground to GPS satellites in the sky, we’ve come a long way making air travel safer, faster, and more affordable.

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

July 5, 2011 Inyokern

The Liberty Gazette

July 5, 2011

Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely


Mike and Linda Ely would like to thank Bob Jamison for venturing across the page to fill in this space while Linda was out racing and Mike was cheering her at the finish line.


Mike: Before the first rays of light started to change the black sky to a lighter tone, I had already spent about 45 minutes doing a preflight inspection on the Piper Lance and loaded it with about 750 lbs. of bank mail. I taxied out from the ramp and advanced the throttle to call all 300 horses in the rumbling engine to life as the airplane began its takeoff roll.

The years have gone by but not the memories. After spending a couple years as a flight instructor I was hired by a freight operator based in Burbank, California. Working my way up through the pilot ranks with this company I first flew Piper Arrows and Lances, then twin-engine Piper Chieftains, then turboprops like DeHavilland Twin Otters and Beech 99s. My final years there were spent crisscrossing the country in the middle of the night in Learjets.

Departing Burbank to the north, I’d cross the ridge as the horizon became bright in the morning light. Soon after I’d descend to an airport just south of the restricted area surrounding Edwards Air Force Base, home of the US Air Force’s Flight Test Center and NASA’s Dryden Research Center, touching down at Lancaster Fox Field about 6:30 every morning. I’d meet two other airplanes and a number of drivers where we would exchange some bags and then continue on our way.

Leaving Lancaster and accompanied by a co-worker in another Lance, the route I flew took me through the Military Operations Area (MOA) adjacent to the restricted airspace. Even though it isn’t restricted itself, the MOA was busy with military airplanes, even at that time of the morning. I’ve seen SR-71 Blackbirds, U-2 Spy Planes, F-4 Phantoms, F-14, F-15 and F-16 fighters, F-111, B-52 and B-1 Bombers and a few things that I can’t even tell you what they were.

After crossing through the MOA I would cross Mojave Airport and proceed into Inyokern Airport just a few miles south of China Lake Naval Weapons Center. On approach to the airport I liked crossing low over the rising terrain near a particular mountain. This mountain has holes in it on several sides and the angle of the sunrays at this time of the morning allowed me to look down inside the huge rock, hollowed out by gold miners some fifty years before.

As I landed at Inyokern, the pilot of the other Lance continued up the Owens Valley which sits between two tall mountains ranges with peaks in excess of 14,000 feet. He eventually landed at Mammoth Lakes Airport at 7,500 feet above sea level where he spent the day. Leaving Inyokern I crossed mountains and headed for Tonopah in the Nevada desert and then would fly to Mammoth too. We were the first flights up the Owens Valley in the morning and the last flights down at night.

There were times when the weather was absolutely gorgeous and there were those times when it was absolutely vicious. It has been one of the most interesting places to fly and a place where I learned so much about flying, weather, and myself. As Bob Jamison wrote in this space last week, if I had to do it all over again, I’d say, “Sign Me Up!”

www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com

June 28, 2011 "Sign me up!"

The Liberty Gazette

June 28, 2011

Ely Air Lines
by Guest Columnist Bob Jamison

Linda and Mike Ely asked I step in their parachute harness and jot down a few lines along their very popular theme of flying. Linda will be out of town to compete again in the Women’s Air Race Classic that finishes in Mobile, Alabama. I’m honored by this and only hope it can in some small way do justice to their time honored articles.

~ Bob Jamison

The final semester for me in college presented an unusual opportunity. No, it wasn’t a big paying job because I had a promotion promised from my high school days as a janitor to a full grown teller’s job. That was quite a step up.

Speaking of stepping up, a neighbor down the hall in the school dormitory showed me a real parachute he had. It seems he borrowed it from his pilot dad. The chute was located in the bucket seat of a war weary Stearman bi-plane his dad purchased at a some kind of surplus auction sale. Later that same parachute came in handy.

As luck would have it, head of the athletic department of the college was a former air force pilot instructor. He had collected a few airplanes which he hangered at the Huntsville Airport. One was the famous Piper J-3 Cub; another was a Taylor Craft while a more advanced airplane was a sleek Globe Swift. Furthermore, he would teach any student to fly and earn his private pilot license at a very low cost. I signed up!

The Swift was built like a miniature P-51 I thought and was almost as beautiful to see it fly. But that airplane was off limits to us ‘kids’ as it was far too fast and the bottom wing with retractable landing gear was not for the green horn beginner.

The first flight was just a ride I figured. It was the practical approach from the ground school where you learned the air speed indicator, altimeter, rate of climb (or decent), RPM (revolutions per minute), needle ball & bank (turn coordinator instrument) and a few other rudimentary instruments, all without an electrical system whatsoever. The automatic pilot consists of your hand on the throttle, feet on the rudder pedals and eyes glancing at the instruments and on the horizon. As far as the parachute was concerned, it was the only way to hitch-hike a ride to the dorm because the airport was next to the prison. I carried the chute so folks could see I must be a pilot with no car. That would be right.

There were no head phones so the instructor shouted in your ear and tells you how stupid you were for trying to push the throttle past the ‘red line’ or pulling back the power to approach the stalling speed. The weather was hot and sweat was pouring down my shirt and my hands were wringing wet but I was having a ball even if my pals on the ground could hear the instructor yelling in my ear.

Finally, it was solo time meaning I had the thing all by myself for the first time. Boy, was it quiet and no hollering. Only the musical sound of the sixty five horse power engine. Afterwards, it was repetitive maneuvers, stalls, coordinated s-turns and touch-and-go’s (landing and take offs). What was best was the anticipation of solo cross country trips with airport stops at prescribed check points.

My instructor Mr. Joe Kirk, gave me some sound advice before I flew over to Lufkin, Texas for my flight test. He said, “You are going to mess up but I think you can pass. Remember this one thing and do not forget it. You keep that ball in the socket!!!” That means watching the turn and bank indicator ball that slides to one side or the other if your turn is not perfectly coordinated with stick and rudder. I passed.

Back at the hangar the check pilot, Mr. A. O. McQueen, was signing my private license. A roar was heard and an airplane barely made it over the roof and did a bouncing landing. We all wondered who that could be. The man flying the plane stopped, made a few circles in the runway and stopped again. ‘

Get in my pickup boy; let’s go see what is the matter with that guy. The pilot was so drunk he couldn’t taxi the plane. How he landed it was a point of amazement. We put him in the pickup and I taxied the plane to the hanger and tied it down.

After the fourth cup of coffee, he said he was an airplane mechanic that did an engine job for the owner but he couldn’t pay for it. So, he signed over the title to the mechanic. I bought it for the price of the bill which was a bargain, and flew it home the next day after graduation. That is, I owned an airplane before I ever owned a car.

After several glorious flights a freak storm wrecked the plane while it was tied down. But I already had my eye on a Stearman bi-plane a farmer bought from one of those surplus auctions but never learned to fly. One of the crop duster pilots was a former navy fighter pilot in WWII. He told me to buy it and he would teach me to fly the Stearman. But he also gave me a severe warning of its narrow landing gear, its weight and tricky stall characteristics. He was right. It took me almost as long to solo in that airplane with his help as it did for me to solo in the Cub.

One trip I made in that old Stearman was to Kingsville, Texas. The late Don Shilling was my passenger in the back open cockpit. The airport in Kingsville was huge. It couldn’t be the town airport, I thought, so it must be the navy training base (which it had been). I saw another airport farther west so I landed there. Here came a jeep with two guys carrying Winchester rifles. “What are you doing landing here? This is a private airport of the King Ranch!” I yelled back over the sound of the plane’s engine and said, “If you move that jeep over a little I’ll be out of here in one minute; and I was”. Flying back home was uneventful until I got to the west edge of Matagorda Bay.

Again, the plane was a military trainer with no electrical system, no radio, no nav-aids, only a compass. Fog and rain was coming in from the gulf and visibility was limited. I could see the ground now from only 500 ft to remain below the fog and rain. Then the land turned to water. The water turned to blue waves! I’m over the gulf now I knew. That perfect maneuver all pilots remember is the 180 degree turn (straight back from where you last saw land). Then I just followed the coast line for a happy landing back home.

What a blast! Looking back over five decades, flying has been a spectacular experience. It is sometimes challenging, often relaxing and always enjoyable. If I had to do it all over again I would tell Mr. Kirk, “Sign me up”.