What a Flying Machine

Hey there,

These incredible machines are like a time capsule, whisking me back to my youth. The startup rituals and the distinctive sound of those radial engines - pure nostalgia. I can’t help but reminisce about Sundays spent with my father, parking at the airport after our weekend drives, just to watch Frontier Airlines take off.

Back in those days, there wasn’t an imposing airport fence. A little aspiring pre-school pilot like me had the freedom to interact with the flight crew. I’d often find myself touring the plane and even hanging out in the cockpit - thrilling stuff!

The highlight, though, was standing just beyond the wingtips of those DC-3s. The big radial engines would whine, chug, puff smoke and fire, and then roar to life. It was occasionally a bit frightening, but always exhilarating! I absolutely loved it.

Sometimes, we’d explore a WWII plane. My father flew in that war, had a big box of photos from it, yet never uttered a word about it.

Later, whenever an unusual plane approached the airport, I’d be outside in a flash with my binoculars. If it was intriguing, I’d pedal my bike there to get a closer look.

To keep me out of his hair, my father would occasionally fire up a Link trainer while grading papers. Those moments only fueled my imagination. Little did anyone know back then that I’d eventually embark on an aviation career, only to take a different turn at the last instant.

Decades later, my father and I found ourselves standing right in front of both a B-17 and a B-24 during startup. It was nothing short of awesome! There I was, engulfed in the flames, oil smoke, roar, low-frequency prop wash, and the symphony of noise created by all those clacking, whining, and growling engine parts. My father climbed aboard, and off he went to revisit memories from his past.

My reaction was different. I couldn’t help but marvel at how anyone could get all those clacking, whining, and growling engine parts to harmoniously and reliably work together for so long, even when they were brand new.

Even more astonishing was the realization that decades ago, a teenager like my father would climb into such a machine, fly for a dozen hours in a hostile environment, and then get up the next day to do it all over again.

Those men and machines were truly incredible! I love taking a nostalgic visit back to those times from time to time.

Stay amazed, ✨

Cheers, D 🌴🌊