And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Same here. DC3, flying from Ft Myers to Coral Gables went I enlisted in the army 1974. Entered in the back door then walked uphill (tail dragger) to my seat, which looked just like the vinyl seats in a school bus. A gently swaying ride across the everglades at only a few thousand feet altitude.
My first ride was in 1981, flying from Oahu to Maui on Molokai Air. Same up hill walk to my seat, and the seats looked just as you described them, Ghostsniper. As an aside, my brother-in-law is a pilot and does he get spun up when I tell him he's a glorified bus driver, even if the seats aren't vinyl.
NC-18606 American Clipper. Atlantic service. Sold to the U.S. Navy in 1942. Sold to World Airways after the War. The flying boats inspired a new generation of aviators, who went on to fly the next generation of Clippers, the B377 Stratocruiser. It was all "seat of your pants" flying.
Easily in the top 5-10 stories of outstanding airmanship. Pan Am's Boeing B-314 "Pacific Clipper" landed in Auckland, New Zealand on December 7, 1941 After days of corporate decision making, Pacific Clipper set out from New Zealand on December 16, 1941. Flying to Australia then westward across southern Asia, Africa and South America before arriving 30K miles later at LaGuardia on January 06, 1942. All on $500 cash borrowed from a bank in Gladstone, Queensland, Australia and likely untold goodwill along the way.
I like the tall masted sailing ship in the background.
ReplyDeletemore than one, I believe.
DeleteI would've like to had a flight in one of those. The oldest aircraft I've flown in is the DC3. The Clipper is a cool looking aircraft.
ReplyDeleteSame here. DC3, flying from Ft Myers to Coral Gables went I enlisted in the army 1974. Entered in the back door then walked uphill (tail dragger) to my seat, which looked just like the vinyl seats in a school bus. A gently swaying ride across the everglades at only a few thousand feet altitude.
DeleteMy first ride was in 1981, flying from Oahu to Maui on Molokai Air. Same up hill walk to my seat, and the seats looked just as you described them, Ghostsniper. As an aside, my brother-in-law is a pilot and does he get spun up when I tell him he's a glorified bus driver, even if the seats aren't vinyl.
DeleteOldest ride for me is the Tin Lizzy; would have been nice if Ford had stayed in the game.
DeleteYes, that uphill climb was something. Now try it dragging one of the stone-age UHF R/T's.
DeleteLooks like Indiana Jones running towards the loading ramp…
ReplyDeleteWhich clipper was this?
ReplyDeleteNC-18606 American Clipper. Atlantic service. Sold to the U.S. Navy in 1942. Sold to World Airways after the War.
DeleteThe flying boats inspired a new generation of aviators, who went on to fly the next generation of Clippers, the B377 Stratocruiser. It was all "seat of your pants" flying.
Easily in the top 5-10 stories of outstanding airmanship.
ReplyDeletePan Am's Boeing B-314 "Pacific Clipper" landed in Auckland, New Zealand on December 7, 1941
After days of corporate decision making, Pacific Clipper set out from New Zealand on December 16, 1941. Flying to Australia then westward across southern Asia, Africa and South America before arriving 30K miles later at LaGuardia on January 06, 1942. All on $500 cash borrowed from a bank in Gladstone, Queensland, Australia and likely untold goodwill along the way.
https://www.panam.org/pan-am-inspirations/634-saga-of-the-pacific-clipper
back in the day when first flights was a spectator sport anticipating a good ending.
ReplyDeleteYou could practice your putt on the flight deck of that thing.
ReplyDelete