SNYDER — They served their country, and now their hometown is flying them back a favor.
Area veterans took a ride
above Scurry County on Friday in a World War II-era P-51 Pecos Bill
plane. The aircraft caught admiration at the town’s fly-in and air show
before the servicemen hopped in for a flight.
“I’m looking forward to it very much,” said Frank Miller.
The local veteran was an infantry trainee at the end of the war, narrowly missing a chance to fly in battle.
“I was saved from the invasion of Japan by Harry Truman’s bomb,” he said.
Doug Flynn, chairman of
the Silent Wings Museum foundation and director of the World War II
Glider Pilots Association, admired the military plane while he waited
for a ride.
“This is a real nice deal — it’s a piece of history,” he said.
The air show opens to the
public Saturday with general admission fees of $10. A host of planes
can be found in the Scurry County Airport’s Winston Field.
“These are the absolute best of the best,” said John Rogotzke, director of the White Buffalo chapter of the Texas Air Museum.
Among the flying visitors
is Patty Wagstaff, an inductee of the National Aviation Hall of Fame
whose efforts in the sky have garnered multiple awards. The
Florida-based pilot and flight instructor said she’s happy to share her
lifelong flight affection with West Texas.
“I’ve done air shows a
long time,” she said. “My dad was a pilot, so I grew up around it. I’m
excited about flying in a new location.”
Pilot Kyle Franklin — in
town from Neosho, Missouri — is ready to share a comedy routine with his
Franklin’s Flying Circus. Portraying a would-be pilot, he flies a plane
while dragging its wings on the ground, stalling it at 100 feet and
everything else that could flunk a student out of flight school.
You could almost call it a how-not-to-fly class.
“It’s an act where a crazy guy steals an airplane. It’s basically what not to do when you’re flying,” he said.
The airport is located just west of Snyder. For more information, call (325) 207-3379.
Story and photo: http://lubbockonline.com
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