What a small world.....and my sad story..
I was 17, had just graduated from high school, and didn't know what I really wanted to do in life. I had two uncles who worked at a small airport called Moraine Air Park near Dayton, Ohio. One of them suggested I work there for the summer. What great memories...
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Ahh memories!
We moved around a lot when I was a kid (2 kindergartens in LA and one in Indiana). One of those moves was to Wichita where my dad ended up working for Cessna, watching over the production of 150's and 17x's. Sky King would come in for his 'new' plane, Santa would arrive in his plane and every Christmas we'd drive by Mrs. Beech's house to marvel at the Christmas decorations.
Fast forward a few years the summer of high school graduation I started flight training at Moraine Air Park south of Dayton. Back then it was a grass strip, where Citabrias would slowly climb into the sky. Three sides of the runway were surrounded by levee & a river with a 'sea' plane base. The take off end had tall power lines, the river & 6 lanes of I75. On the approach end I was taught to aim the plane below the levee. Just as you crossed the river (close to the levee) there was a small waterfalls. The air currents would lift you up and sit you back down on the other side of the levee. I just thought that was the way it was done.
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Still my most fun flying experiences were those as a kid on a grass strip, strapped into a Citabria, throttle on the left side wall and stick in my right hand; slowly cruising the area over south Dayton and shooting down B-52's heading in and out of Wright-Pat.
I did my first US flight at Moraine Air Park back in 2003 in a 172.
Sad long post read it with your own risk!
It sad that almost the reason that immigrate to the US is to got my Commercial and Instrument ratings and i was dreaming of that for years back to my Country.
Suddenly (i mean that) i found a job in the US in Restaurant/Entertainment Business and i jump on this like crazy. Imagine that the few thinks i knew about US were some popular/famous place like NYC, Miami, Las Vegas , LA etc.
So I found the Job and i had to move to Dayton OH.(my mind was thinking is Dayton(a), famous from Car & Moto Racing) but a little search show that is a couple of thousand miles away!!
Anyway, we jump into plane and there you go to Dayton Ohio.
And then i was
SHOCKED!!!!
First i saw all Ohio car License plates "
Birth Place of Aviation"
After i found out that
Wright Brothers make the first airplane
exactly
100 years ago (was 2003) in their small bicycle company in Dayton Ohio (All of us know that first flight took place in N. Carolina)
I felt i was Blessed. What a GOD'S sign!! Imagine that i was dreaming to come to US for Flight Training and by LUCK OR FATE or whatever you call it, i was landed without know it at
Birth Place of Aviation exactly 100 years after first Flight.
But things are going south for me those last 5-6 years.
I went with all difficulties of a new guy in new land, immigration, language, etc, spend a lot of money, Restaurant closed after 8 months and lost job, i moved to Cincy, delivered pizza for 2 years, work construction here and there, moved to New York for a year, i came back , and finally i co-open a Restaurant in last 8 months, which is not going very well with this economy.
Now it's time to reconsider my American Aviation Dream and i may forced to go back to my Country and start again since i may not be able to make a living..... SAD icon here.
thanks for sharing