The 2018 edition of The Air Race Classic ran from Sweetwater TX to Fryeburg ME, with intermediate stops at Alva OK, Beatrice NB, Faribault MN, Galesburg IL, Auburn IN, Cadillac MI, Newark OH, and Penn Yan NY. Some of our members assisted at the Newark (KVTA) stop.
Mary Biller and Christine Mortine attended a formal unveiling of Fifinella, a piece of Walt-Disney nose art for The Pride of Westerville, one of Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base's KC-135 stratotankers dedicated to commemorating the services of WASP members who trained there in B-17s at the Lockbourne Army Air Field 75 years prior in 1943. Fifinella was the female gremlin officially adopted as the mascot of the Women Airforce Service Pilots during World War II. The International Women's Air & Space Museum has more information about Roald Dahl's Fifinella and the WASPs.
Christine addressed the Rickenbacker gathering on behalf of the Ninety-Nines. Further information about Fifinella the stratotanker and her dedication ceremony should be available here in the Air Mobility Command newsletter published July 13, 2018.
The July fly-out event took the chapter to the Richard Downing airport (I40) in Coshocton OH to visit Missionary Maintenance Services Aviation. MMS Aviation, founded in 1975, is a faith-based non-profit organization dedicated to providing hands-on training experience for pilots and service technicians in the Missionary Aviation organizations of the world.
Geraldine "Jerrie" Mock, from Columbus OH, was the first woman to fly solo around the world. In March 1964, Jerrie departed eastbound from KCMH (named Port Columbus at that time) toward Bermuda and she returned from the west a month later after logging 22858 miles (36786 km), 158 flying hours, and 21 world stopovers with her 1953 Cessna 180 Skywagon, N1538C, The Spirit of Columbus. Jerrie later saw that airplane donated by Cessna to the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Some chapter members visited the Jerrie Mock section of "The Works" history, art, and technology museum in Newark, Ohio, Jerrie's birthplace, and were shown around by Susan Reid, Jerrie Mock's younger sister.
The Champaign Aviation Museum at Grimes Field airport (I74) in Urbana OH is dedicated to preserving historic warbirds, especially military aircraft from World War II. Their largest current project is Champaign Lady, a B-17G restoration involving manufacture of numerous components from original plans, all done by dedicated volunteers who spend countless hours on the intricate details.
The museum has much more to offer than merely restored airplanes, however, including many other exhibits from military life. We always enjoy a side trip to the museum whenever we drop in for lunch at the renowned Urbana Airport Cafe, just a few steps south of the new museum building. In August, Mary Biller and Paula Rumbaugh did just that, and Mary snapped this photo of Paula clowning behind a photo-op cutout in the main hangar of the museum.
In September, Christine Mortine arranged a "hangar crawl" at The Ohio State University Airport KOSU. Many of us base our airplanes there, and it gave us a sort of "show-and-tell" opportunity to wander around portions of the airport and admire each others' prized possessions. We don't have any airplane pictures to show here from the outing, but here's a photo of what was a gorgeous sunset as it appeared that evening from Christine's hangar.
