Well, we're on hold with the airplane while the first coat of interior paint cures (and I've also decided to strip the paint from the stainless firewall... not sure why I didn't just mask it the first time around) so we've had some more free time than usual. That actually works out, because I've been asked to be part of a formation flight in memory of our friend Lee Naaktgeboren who sadly lost his battle with cancer over the weekend.
Lee was a friend who I'd describe as a master-of-all-trades, who had the ability to fill in any gaps at the Marion airport (C17) that might ever have arisen. If something needed to be done or improved upon, Lee just went and did it without even asking for help-- and sometimes before you even realized it needed to be done! His generosity and work ethic were both unrivaled by almost anyone, and he helped keep the airport operating smoothly all the way up until just a few days before he passed. Although I didn't get to know him quite as well as many others at the airport, he still made quite an impression on me and taught me a thing or two about more than one or two things. He will be missed by many.
The formation flight was to be a choreographed event involving several maneuvers, including a Missing Man fly-over for the final pass. I was chosen to participate in part because I fly a Piper Archer (Cherokee family), and the formation was to be a flight of Cherokees. The flight ended up being four of us, with three Cherokees and an Aztec... still a Piper I guess, but of course a much faster and more capable, twin-engined variety. This was my first experience being part of a "proper" formation flight other than the occasional goofing-off formations that tend to happen on the way to a cookout or an EAA event. In truth, all four of us tasked with this mission were a bit inexperienced at flying in formation, and we all learned quite a bit!
We did our first rehearsal Monday evening, which went fairly well but really was just a warm-up to flying with each other. Tuesday over lunch I came back out to the airport to do some solo airwork and touch & go's, trying to really get back in tune with the Archer (I had been flying a 172 lately). Then this morning we really hit it hard with practice, putting in about 3 hours of flying and as many on the ground discussing the different procedures. Tonight, it was showtime!
With about 100 (maybe more) folks in attendance at the airport, we proceeded to take off in sequence and joined up in formation on an extended downwind leg from the pattern. For our first flyover, we approached the airport from the north at a high rate of speed, and descended to a very low height before breaking off in a relatively aggressive climb and turnout in different directions. I filmed most of the action from my Garmin Virb, attached to the left rear window of our Archer:
We then rejoined in formation south of the airport and came back in for the missing man formation:
After this maneuver, we rejoined one last time on the north side to come back to the airport and do an overhead to land. It was a great experience, and I feel like one hour of flying formation like this helped me gain more experience and skill than 30 hours of cross-country solo flying. Plus, and of course more importantly, we were able to pay tribute to a great man who left us too soon. Thanks go out to the other pilots involved, in no particular order: Tim, Justin, and Cole. I was truly honored to be able to be a part of this!
Fair skies, Lee.