Tue, Oct 14, 2003
AOPA Member Tom Smith
has recently seen the world from a different vantage
point. Smith of Mineola, Texas, is one of the monthly winners
in AOPA's Centennial of Flight Sweepstakes who recently claimed his
prize — a trip to Sedona, Arizona, for a half-day's flying in
an open-cockpit Waco similar to the Sweepstake's grand prize.
"I realized I had taken to flying as an efficient mode of
transportation and that the thrill had somehow been left behind,"
said Smith. "If nothing else, the Waco experience brought that
back, and hopefully, I won't lose it again."
Smith is one of the 24 monthly winners chosen to experience
flight in an open-cockpit biplane like the fully restored 1940 Waco
UPF-7 biplane that is the grand prize in the Centennial of Flight
Sweepstakes. Red Rock Biplanes provides the ride. Smith and all of
the monthly winners also receive a leather flight jacket with the
Waco logo on the back and a plaque commemorating their flight.
During a stop along their route, Smith said, "Standing at the
FBO looking out across the line, the Waco stands out among the
array of 'modern' aircraft. It was drawing more attention than the
two Gulfstreams on the ramp. It was truly an awesome sight."
He described the Waco this way: "Is it a cross-country,
get-there plane? Not a chance. Is it a cross-country,
see-everything plane that makes flying around the patch or the $100
hamburger trip a thrill on a glorious flying day? You betcha!"
Anyone who joins or renews membership in AOPA during the
two-year sweepstakes period is automatically entered.
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