I probably did 4-5 thousand hours before I flew kerosene driven engines. Are there any other piston engine pilots here who can chime in? Radials, flat, etc. And helicopters? Beech 18. R4D, Bell 47, Hiller 12E? I know there are other dnosaurs on this forum....... Semper Fi Rocky
Although I'm a fellow "Dino", aside from piston-powered T-34 & T-28s in the Tracom, I flew the USS MIDWAY's R-1820-powered C-1A (COD) on 2 deployments. The other 4k+ hours was JP -fueled. Never; however, had the opportunity to fly a tail-dragger or afterburner A/C. BzB
Oh, no tears... I would like to have experienced the awesome power of AB (great for Oil Co. stockholders); OTOH, I never once in my career had to call for priority/emergency landing "LOW STATE"! Edit: Photo, my 'Ol Squadron VFA-146 today! BzB
Got about 1350 hours single engine/seat prop time ...1100 of'em in the venerable old tail-draggin' R-3350 powered Spad ...inc 302 (prop) traps ...attached photo NOT logged as a trap! (Also read my sig ...flight leader was good friend Joe Frick ...a different adventure, different time ...more about all that later!)
Got 7,000 hours, almost all in avagas airplanes. I've flown about 60 different types that include Cassutt racers, J-3 Cubs, RV's, Pitts Specials, Extra 300, Cessna 310 and 340, but my favorite is my round engine Yak-52.
Got over a thousand hours in Able Dogs behind the R-3350, two of which failed on me. Was a guppy centurian on the One Nothing Maru where I put one in the barricade on a black-ass night. Plus time in the training command and proficiency flying in the T-34 and T-28. Was current in the U-3 at China Lake and right seat qualed in the C-117 and C-131. And BzB, you didn't miss much by not flying A/B machines. Was also current in the T-38 up there and the only thing that happened when I went supersonic was the needle went past 1. The third time I went supersonic, the guy driving the airplane was in a yellow van forty miles away.
Have a few items stored in my PC re the SPAD ...here's one of them: http://www.clipwings.com/index.php?command=show_video&video_id=971 Speakers/headphones on, please!
