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The trip home

LettersFromFlyoverCountry

Well Known Member
I will write a long story later.

As many of you know, N614EF is named after my parents wedding anniversary along with their first initials.

As I was building, I was dreaming of the day I could fly her "home," back to my ancestral homeland of Fitchburg Massachusetts.

I had hoped, years ago, that my mother could get a ride in it, but alas, at 92, time has made it impossible.

She fell recently at home and spent 7 hours on the ground before someone found her (nobody knew that those life alert things, you have to hold the button down for more than 5 seconds, so she pushed it and pushed it but nobody came). She doesn't move so well and I've vowed to get "home" more to check in on her as best I can and do what we can do to help keep her in her home (my twin brother redecked he outside where she fell so there are no steps and access to dangerous areas is restricted.

You just can't tell an old New England broad "no."

So yesterday, I flew her home. My mother waited outside "all afternoon" she said to see me fly over, but, alas, she went inside before I went over. I was an hour late getting out of South St. Paul and couldn't make it up in the air. 7 hours of flight time over 9 hours. The Indiana to Binghamton NY was murder on the bladder, but the plane was perfect.

Then it was once around my mom's house just in case she was there.

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Past the city I grew up in.

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On the final approach for Runway 14 at KFIT.

A friend I went to Sunday school with as a kid and haven't seen in about 50 years (we follow each other on Facebook) picked me up and delivered me to Mom's house while we reminisced about our city.

That was Friday.

Today, Mom got to meet her plane.

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We walked over to the bench outside the airport restaurant and I went back, started the plane, taxied past her, and then took off on a crosswind runway, letting other people in the pattern, using the correct runway, know what I was up to.

I took off, and then made a low, high-speed pass as I announced on the radio (which was playing loudly in the fuel truck parked nearby) that this was a pilot's salute. I don't know if she heard that or not. We New Englanders don't really talk about such things.

Then I landed on the correct runway, and as I taxied past her, I blew her a kiss.

(A few more pictures of the trip here)
 
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Bob, great story---------pretty sure there will be more misty eyes than just mine when folks read this.

Job well done
 
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Bob, very nicely done - the whole journey, not just this trip. You've been very inspirational to so many people - thanks.
 
Heh. I was thinking of you as I flew across the Hudson. Unfortunately, I have to go back. I''ll try on Sunday. A couple of fronts to get through. May have to overnight somewhere south of Cleveland.
 
Go - Bob - Go!

Well played, my friend, very well played..........

So happy this part of the journey has happened!
 
Fitchburg memories

I will write a long story later.

As many of you know, N614EF is named after my parents wedding anniversary along with their first initials.

As I was building, I was dreaming of the day I could fly her "home," back to my ancestral homeland of Fitchburg Massachusetts.

Hey Bob.....having grown up in southern MA I did my second solo x/c from Hopedale>Bedford>Fitchburg>1B6.....although at 16 yrs old, with brain half-formed....i landed at Ft Devens by mistake....quite some time later after signing a number of papers(none of which i read) i was allowed to leave after receiving my military airfield endorsement:D. Of course my flight instructor was worried...no cell phones back then....i got back...showed him the logbook and told him the story....he changed careers and became a life ins salesman...i wonder what part i had in that decision:confused:

Great writup....thanks
 
I made it home last night after overnighting in Elmira because of inbound weather. Snaked home over the Alleghenies, fuel stop in Medina -- home of famous RVers who were all out making a living, over to Valpairaiso (sp?) for fuel and around Chicago and up to Saint Paul.

I learned so much on the trip and especially enjoyed working with the controllers from handoff to handoff.

As with most of these big hurdles, it was a trip of self discovery. I learned things not to do again and a bunch of good things to put in the flight bag.

And I made a greaser landing last evening at the home airport, which never looked better to me.
 
Very nice, Bob. Thanks for the hot links to the day job blogs, the contrast in subject matter was complimentary, if that makes sense :eek:.
 
Bob, enjoyed the write-up! I have touched many of those airports on trips back home (east), too. Thanks for the inspiration.
- Roger
 
Enjoyed the trip, Bob. You ought to be a writer! ;) I opened up skyvector and found your airports.
 
As a former Pennsylvania resident, your comment about the PA wilderness made me smile. I still get the "willies" flying over it and only seeing an expanse of treetops on lumpy hills. :eek:
 
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