The changing weather forecast didn’t discourage us! With Saturday weather looking much better, we decided to move the fly-out back to its original date, and we’re glad we did.

Five aircraft carrying a total of fifteen people departed New Garden Saturday morning on the way to Delaware Coastal airport. The ride was smooth despite some stiff headwinds, but nobody complained. It was good flying time. We all arrived at our destination shortly after 11am, and after a group photo we headed to Arena’s for lunch.

We all arrived at our destination shortly after 11am, and after a group photo we headed to Arena’s for lunch. The staff there was very accommodating, and we were quickly seated in a private seating area, sharing all sorts of aviation stories as we waited for the food to arrive. It’s amazing how quiet things get once the food arrives.

After lunch, we walked over to the Delaware Aviation Museum. Our hosts shared plenty of stories and details about Panchito and the rest of the exhibits, while our group scattered about the hangar, looking at the exhibits. It was nice to hear the story of how Panchito got its name, and how it went from a WWII bomber to a fire bomber, then crop duster (can you believe that??) before being restored to its current appearance. Also, we found out that for less than the cost of a PPL (but you have to have one and a multi-engine rating to start with) you could get type rated as Second-In-Command to fly Panchito. Any takers?

After spending a good amount of time at the museum, we thanked our hosts and their volunteers for their hospitality and their dedication in keeping the museum aircraft flying and we headed back to New Garden. The stiff morning headwind had turned into a moderate tailwind (it’s never the other way around, is it?) and after an uneventful flight we were all back on the ground.

Many thanks to Bob, our flight leader for this event, for organizing it and keeping a close eye on weather, readjusting plans accordingly when the forecast changed. Thank you to all the pilots who joined us for this event – we couldn’t do this without you.

Our next fly-out is Sunday, May 18th – we are going to Gettysburg to visit the battlegrounds and have lunch at the Dobbin House Tavern, a place built “four score and seven years” before President Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address.