Airplane Crash

June 21, 2010

 

Emails sent today:

Well hopefully I have all the parts I need heading my way.  Should have her back together by Wednesday, but will only fly local since it will be too late to start home.  Might get out of here by Thursday, don't know where I'm heading since I'm solo, figure I'll take a different route home.  Weather is great here and perfect for flying home, just my luck that stationary front with all the storms out west of here might decide to move east and mess my plans up for getting home.  Have a couple good friends here, everyday has been a party thus far, even have use of a pool now.  Hoping to get pizza for lunch today...you all know how I like pizza!!!!

The other J-3 pilot I'm camping with has been coming to "Sentimental Journey" since the beginning, he lost 4 pints of blood when he got here.  He got out of the hospital when I moved across the runway.  He has been hanging with me till he feels well enough to fly back to Iowa.  We worked on his plane yesterday, he says he might leave early in the evening before dark, then I will be the last airplane left.  Been getting to know a lot of the locals, starting to feel like I live here.  Funny I'm still in the Appalachian Mountains just like back in TN.

Well got to go and play,

Griz

 

A plane just crashed within one block from me while I was eating my pizza about an hour ago in Lock Haven, PA.  Apparently a Cessna 210 had engine trouble and was trying to make it to the runway and didn't, crashing into a house and cars and a big fireball.  That's when me and some friends noticed the smoke a block away.  My friend went to investigate since we thought his neighbors house was on fire.  While we remained eating our pizza on his back porch he called shortly after telling me it was a plane crash.  He thought us as pilots would not want to come over, I said no it is because of the spectators that I did not want to come over to see.  The emergency folks were there and they can take care of that stuff.  All three on the plane are more than likely dead.  I'm back at the airport for now.

When you hang out with me it is never a dull moment...as my best friend says.

Griz

June 22, 2010

As you can tell by the picture, no one survived and the real reason my friend tells us not to come over becomes apparent.  I am practically standing at the fence to the airport property and the runway when I take this picture.  He was that close to making it, in fact he would have landed on the street was it not for the utility pole that caught his horizontal stabilizer and spun him.  My friend still wants to go flying after seeing this in person.

Another email sent:

Well I went walking for breakfast across the bridge and then went and visited the crash site.  Then I went back to the Piper Museum to see stuff I missed the first time.  Then the storm came and I got a ride back to the airport,  Think I'll watch one of the movies here at the airport until dinner time when my friend will pick me up to get some subs or Stromboli.  Should have my plane fixed by evening tomorrow, but may not leave until Friday so I can ride the tailwinds from the north that are expected on that day.  I'm planning to fly on the eastern side of the mountains coming back if the weather cooperates.

Griz