THE LAST DAYS OF SUMMER

THE LAST WARM DAYS OF SUMMER ARE ALWAYS FULL OF FUN.
EVERYONE TRYING TO GET THAT LAST FLIGHT IN BEFORE
THE WINTER WINDS COME.

MIKE WAS VERY BUSY TODAY. NOT ONLY FLYING HIS OWN PLANES,
BUT I THINK HE DID AT LEAST TWO SETUPS AND TEST FLIGHTS

DENNIS'S NEW PLANE (ABOVE) FLEW GREAT!
WILDMAN STEVE (BELOW) ALSO HARD A GREAT DAY

DON AND JANICE ARE ENJOYING THE WARM SUNNY DAY

OUR TWO YOUNGEST PILOTS FLEW LOTS TOO

MIKE STANDS BY JUST IN CASE

CRAIG'S DAY DIDN'T END VERY WELL!!
WE ARE NOT SURE WHAT HAPPENED, BUT HE LOST CONTROL
AND CRASHED STRAIGHT DOWN. WE CHECKED THE BATTERY
AND RANGE CHECKED THE RADIO AND FOUND NOTHING.
SO WE ARE STILL NOT SURE WHAT WENT WRONG!

THIS PAST YEAR I'VE BEEN VERY LUCKY, I GOT TO FLY
IN A HOT AIR BALLOON AND A P-51 MUSTANG!!

HOW DID I GET MY RIDE? WELL I WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME. THE OWNER(ART KROOT) WAS FLYING AT A LOCAL EVENT AND FLEW BY MY PARENTS HOUSE. WE GOT IN THE CAR AND FOLLOWED HIM SO WE COULD SEE HIM LAND. THERE WAS A LITTLE MORE BREEZE THAN THE CHASE TEAM WANTED AND THE BALLOON WAS MOVING PRETTY FAST, SO THEY ASKED IF I'D HELP CATCH IT! WELL OF COURSE I WOULD! MY WIFE, FATHER,& SON ALSO HELPED ROLL THE BALLOON UP AND PACK UP THE EQUIPMENT. SO WE ALL GOT TO TAKE A RIDE!

MY MUSTANG RIDE WAS A REAL STROKE OF LUCK. OUR LOCAL AIRPORT HAS A WARBIRDS FLYIN EVERY SPRING AND WE WENT TO SEE THE PLANES. MOST ARE AT-6 TEXANS, BUT THERE WAS A BEAUTIFUL P51D THAT HAD BEEN RESTORED INTO A TRAINER(TWO SEATER) MODEL. THE OWNER/PILOT, JIM SHUTTLEWORTH, WAS REALLY NICE TO ANSWER ALL OF THE QUESTIONS MY SON AND I HAD, AND EVEN LET US CLIMB UP ON THE WING TO LOOK IN THE COCKPIT. WE TOLD HIM HOW CRAIG & I FLEW RC PLANES AND HE WAS IMPRESSED WITH OUR FATHER/SON FLYING TEAM. HE THEN POINTED OUT HIS SON WHO WAS FLYING THEIR AT-6! JUST BEFORE WE WERE GOING TO HEAD HOME I REMEMBERED AN OLD FUEL TANK,AT MY FATHERS FARM, THAT WAS SUPPOSE TO HAVE CAME FROM A WW-2 FIGHTER. MR.SHUTTLEWORTH WAS INTERESTED IN IT FOR A MUSEUM PIECE.THE NEXT DAY I TOOK THE TANK TO SHOW HIM, AND THE TANK IS NOW THOUGHT TO BE A EXTRA FUEL TANK USED TO FERRY BOMBERS ACROSS COUNTRY DURING WW2. TO FINISH THE STORY JIM NEEDED TO FLY TO ANOTHER AIRPORT ABOUT 20 MILES FROM SEYMOUR, AND ASKED IF I'D LIKE TO SET IN THE BACK! WOW! HOW LUCKY CAN YOU GET!!

SCATVII'S WEB SITE