KInda' wish there was an additional voting chad between 2 and 3.
Not a pilot, don't play sims (or any videogames for that matter (crap reflexes)), but as I noted in a recent TNZ thread, my late uncle (married to a paternal aunt), was a career long military pilot, starting in the Army Air Corps at the start of World War 2;, joined the Air Force once it was established; flew during the Korean conflict and purchased a private plane when he finally retired from the military in the early 60s. He never bragged about his experience. the only reason I learned he flew 187 combat related missions in the Pacific sector (recon as opposed to overt fighting) was because my aunt hung a plaque in the den for any and all to read.
Admittedly, I know squat about planes in general. I can barely tell the difference between a jet airliner and a bird (the meat and feathers kind). But I do have an affinity for the single engine puppy my uncle owned, a "Ryan Navion".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Navion
Sadly, I did know anything about the craft while he was alive. I just remember we'd often visit the local airfield when my father drove to Georgia to see his mother. My uncle ferried family and a a few close friends on occasion. His first granddaughter was airborne a mere week after her birth as he brought back his daughter and grandchild from the hospital in Atlanta. His wife, being a talented seamstress, ripped out the standard shades and replaced them with far more decorative curtains having frilly lace edges.
Alas, his health started to decline around 1980 forcing him to eventually sell his plane. He couldn't fly anymore and so the craft had become a "money pit" of hangar rent and maintenance. His two granddaughters were crying out their eyes the day he signed the papers noting the transfer of ownership. Those tears turned to laughter when the new owner started to taxi the plane from the hangar. Because he had not properly checked that the landing gear control was properly locked, the nose wheel retracted! The plane teetered forward! The nose (and thus the prop) impacted with the ground and the tail levered upward into the frame of the hangar's door! Not 15 minutes after the fool bought the plane, he "crashed" it without even leaving the ground! (I wonder if his name was "Launchpad" McQuack?) From what I hear, the plane was repaired, made airworthy again, but some years later, I think by yet another owner, it got damaged again, that time irreparably.
For my cousin's 50th birthday (that first grandchild of my uncle's I mentioned), I had intended to acquire the services of a 3d modeler who had a passion for military aircraft. I had told him of my uncle, his service, his passion for flying, etc. The digital artist was so moved, he was going to make a model pro bono, but obviously, he preferred some photo refences to get certain modification details correct. Well, I contacted my cousin (my uncle's daughter) thinking she might have those photos. She couldn't find them. She reached out to her younger daughter. She found them, but her scanner was on the fritz. A couple of months passed and she finally got scans made. I immediately e-mailed the 3D sculptor to tell him I had the reference images. Two days later I got an e-mail from...his widow. He had died earlier that week! Oh, she was very nice, addressing me as though I were a friend, actually apologizing, noting he had been looking forward to the exercise. I felt just wretched for her loss!
About a year later, I actually stumbled across a reasonably close variant of a Navion model, free no less! the only major difference was that it had wingtip tanks, a feature my uncle's airplane did not have. Thankfully, the wing geometry was complete underneath the tanks. I was able to remove them without leaving gaping holes in the wings.
More recently, I discovered a model kit company offers a 1/72 scale Navion kit! That I never imagined. It's certainly not one of the better known planes, so I didn't think an injection mold kit company would ever bother creating one! So, I can actually hold in my hand a physical miniature of my uncle's plane if I wish!
Anyway, that's my anecdote.
Not a pilot, don't play sims (or any videogames for that matter (crap reflexes)), but as I noted in a recent TNZ thread, my late uncle (married to a paternal aunt), was a career long military pilot, starting in the Army Air Corps at the start of World War 2;, joined the Air Force once it was established; flew during the Korean conflict and purchased a private plane when he finally retired from the military in the early 60s. He never bragged about his experience. the only reason I learned he flew 187 combat related missions in the Pacific sector (recon as opposed to overt fighting) was because my aunt hung a plaque in the den for any and all to read.
Admittedly, I know squat about planes in general. I can barely tell the difference between a jet airliner and a bird (the meat and feathers kind). But I do have an affinity for the single engine puppy my uncle owned, a "Ryan Navion".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Navion
Sadly, I did know anything about the craft while he was alive. I just remember we'd often visit the local airfield when my father drove to Georgia to see his mother. My uncle ferried family and a a few close friends on occasion. His first granddaughter was airborne a mere week after her birth as he brought back his daughter and grandchild from the hospital in Atlanta. His wife, being a talented seamstress, ripped out the standard shades and replaced them with far more decorative curtains having frilly lace edges.
Alas, his health started to decline around 1980 forcing him to eventually sell his plane. He couldn't fly anymore and so the craft had become a "money pit" of hangar rent and maintenance. His two granddaughters were crying out their eyes the day he signed the papers noting the transfer of ownership. Those tears turned to laughter when the new owner started to taxi the plane from the hangar. Because he had not properly checked that the landing gear control was properly locked, the nose wheel retracted! The plane teetered forward! The nose (and thus the prop) impacted with the ground and the tail levered upward into the frame of the hangar's door! Not 15 minutes after the fool bought the plane, he "crashed" it without even leaving the ground! (I wonder if his name was "Launchpad" McQuack?) From what I hear, the plane was repaired, made airworthy again, but some years later, I think by yet another owner, it got damaged again, that time irreparably.
For my cousin's 50th birthday (that first grandchild of my uncle's I mentioned), I had intended to acquire the services of a 3d modeler who had a passion for military aircraft. I had told him of my uncle, his service, his passion for flying, etc. The digital artist was so moved, he was going to make a model pro bono, but obviously, he preferred some photo refences to get certain modification details correct. Well, I contacted my cousin (my uncle's daughter) thinking she might have those photos. She couldn't find them. She reached out to her younger daughter. She found them, but her scanner was on the fritz. A couple of months passed and she finally got scans made. I immediately e-mailed the 3D sculptor to tell him I had the reference images. Two days later I got an e-mail from...his widow. He had died earlier that week! Oh, she was very nice, addressing me as though I were a friend, actually apologizing, noting he had been looking forward to the exercise. I felt just wretched for her loss!
About a year later, I actually stumbled across a reasonably close variant of a Navion model, free no less! the only major difference was that it had wingtip tanks, a feature my uncle's airplane did not have. Thankfully, the wing geometry was complete underneath the tanks. I was able to remove them without leaving gaping holes in the wings.
More recently, I discovered a model kit company offers a 1/72 scale Navion kit! That I never imagined. It's certainly not one of the better known planes, so I didn't think an injection mold kit company would ever bother creating one! So, I can actually hold in my hand a physical miniature of my uncle's plane if I wish!
Anyway, that's my anecdote.
