Note: The pictures below are thumbnails. Normally, all you would need to do to view the photo in full size is click on the thumbnail with your mouse. However, the large images are damaged and need to be reloaded. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Jeffco Airport (BJC) - Broomfield, Colorado
This Cessna "Skyhawk" 172-P aircraft is one of several aircraft that I have
flown. It used to be based out of an FBO by the name of "Denver Air
Center" at the Jefferson County Airport (Jeffco - BJC) in Broomfield, Colorado.
In late 1997, the fixed based operator (FBO) ceased rental aircraft operations and
is now operating as a full service fixed base operator, providing fuel and maintenance
services to permanent and transient clientele, as well as aircraft sales. The
entire aircraft rental fleet was either put up for sale, including good old N98969, or
moved to another FBO. Since the closing, I have been doing my flying out of the
"McAir Aviation" flying club which
is also based at the Jeffco airport. McAir has an extensive fleet of very well
maintained aircraft of which the majority are Cessna 172 Skyhawks. For more
information, check out their web site!
On this particular day in the summer of 1997, I was taking my mother and oldest daughter, Christina, flying along the Front Range of the majestic Rocky Mountains. It was to be Christina's first flight ever with her Daddy!
On July 11th, 1998, my tired and old body turned 30 years old *sigh*. To help celebrate this milestone in my life, my wife and mother surprised me with a gift that I won't soon forget. First, they tied me up and blind-folded me, stuffed me into our mini-van, and, together with the kids, drove me out of town for about 20 minutes or so. When I removed the blindfold, I found that we had parked ourselves in the parking lot of the Vance Brand Municipal Airport in Longmont, Colorado. In one of the hangars there we met an elderly man who looked me in the eye and asked me if I was ready for the "ride of my life".
I later found out what he meant by that statement. I was about to get to fly what many pilots consider one of the best aircraft ever designed for aerobatic flying: a Pitts S-2A bi-plane. Here are a few of the pictures that were taken on that day:
Getting ready to board the Pitts S-2A bi-plane...
In case you're wondering, my stomach was in knots when this was taken! Not because I was scared, but because I was soooo... excited! I had always wanted to know what it was like to fly a real "stick and rudder" airplane and now I was getting my chance!
Taxiing for takeoff
Here we are taxiing to the active. During the taxi, we had to do a lot of "fish-tailing" in order to see around the nose of the aircraft. This is the norm when flying tail draggers, but the Pitts seemed to be a bit out of the ordinary, especially to a "trike" flyer like me. It sits extremely low to the ground and has a very high and wide nose area.
And away we go.....
The take-off acceleration was out of this world! It was almost as exciting as getting shot off the deck of an aircraft carrier. With all 200 plus horses being maxed out at a density altitude of over 8000 feet, we still managed to get airborne with lots of runway left over, and climbed into the cool Rocky Mountain air like a rocket at over 2000 feet per minute of climb rate! We flew several hours doing barrel rolls, 4-point and 8-point aileron rolls, immelmans, hammerheads, loops, and even an inverted pass over the airport! Was I ever in aviation heaven on that day!
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