Setting the Stage

 

 

Back in the 1940s when I was perhaps eight or ten years old (you've got to cut me a little slack when it comes to remembering things that long ago) my parents gave me a Christmas gift that was intended to simulate an airplane cockpit.

 

A far cry from even the simplest of today's machines known generically as "flight simulators," it was rudimentary to the extreme. Made of sturdy cardboard (considerable assembly required) my “airplane” had an instrument panel full of painted-on gauges and indicators that remained motionless. It had a moveable yoke and control column that fit into a hole in the panel and a pair of free-standing cardboard rudder pedals that rested on the floor and responded to foot pressure by virtue of accordion folds.

The low-level of simulation generated by this state-of-the-art toy came from the depths of my imagination; I had to manufacture what I thought were airplane-engine sounds and I moved the controls back and forth although I had no idea what their function might be on a real airplane (I was also the kid who sat frequently at the wheel of the family car parked in the driveway, motoring along happily on imaginary trips).

Until the cardboard cockpit wore out I spent a lot of time flying to mythical destinations in my virtual airplane...but no matter where it took me I always got there and back even though I didn't know a fuselage from a fuel tank.

All of which begs the question; could this early childhood experience have been a precursor of my eventual full-time involvement in aviation?

There's no way to know for certain but it has stuck in my mind for lo, these many years; it may have been there all the while, encouraging me subconsciously to pursue the several aviation-related careers that began when I was a sophomore at The Ohio State University, careers that continue today in a vicarious mode. I’m still writing about aviation but doing no flying…I’m almost fully retired!

Two significant aviation events stood out during the 47 years that I was an active pilot.

The first (and by far the more important because of the solid foundation it provided) was the U.S. Air Force pilot training program I entered in January 1955. The knowledge, skills and experience I acquired during that 12 months of intensive training prepared me well for future endeavors in military and civilian aviation. Here’s a salute to Ray Petty and Lt. Bill Reynolds, the two excellent flight instructors who, respectively, guided me through primary and basic flight training.

 

The second event took place in 1966 when a serendipitous appointment to the faculty of the Aviation Department at Ohio State rescued me from the mire of a boring dead-end job that had absolutely nothing to do with aviation. For the next 22 years I instructed aviation students in classroom and inflight training, flew many hours in the university’s Air Transportation Service and climbed the academic ladder to the rank of Associate Professor. 

 

There is much more to be said. Borrowing the signature line from the late radio commentator Paul Harvey you will find “the rest of the story” in my book 47 Years in Aviation – A Memoir by clicking here. 

P.S. In addition to sharing aviation stories and comments I welcome your questions…if you come up with a real stumper I’ll do my best to find an answer for you.