Warbird Information Exchange

Early this afternoon, Barnes & Noble bookstore, Billings Montana. Was at the magazine section reading the latest issue of Warbirds International. Frank Borman and his Bell P-63 was on the cover (1998 restoration). As I was reading the article, a gentlemen walked up next to me who was none other than Frank Borman himself.

After briefly regaining my composure, I turned to him, held up the magazine, and said, "Colonel, look here, I'm reading your story. You're on the cover."

Needless to say, I think he was shocked to see himself and his former airplane on the cover of the magazine, but nowhere near as floored as I was to be sitting there reading about the man and his airplane only to have the same man I'm reading about walk up beside me at that exact moment.

I pointed out in the magazine rack where the issue was, he grabbed one himself and said, "Now I can read about it!" He thanked me and headed for the coffee bar. I paid for my magazine and left.

I still can't hardly believe it...

Craig

And now you're kicking yourself: "Why didn't I have him autograph it?"
Cool story!

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Pilot: "Flap switch works hard in down position."
Mechanic: "Flap switch checked OK. Pilot needs more P.T." - Flight report, TB-17G 42-102875 (Hobbs AAF)

Had that happen to me at a airshow, was standing next to Cliff Robertson. I met Borman a couple of times, once in Santa Monica and once at Oshkosh.

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Matt Gunsch, A&P, IA, Warbird maint and restorations
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Now I'm irked--I should have gotten my issue in the mail last week!

But your story reminded of one in last month's Hot Rod magazine. TV Tommy Ivo, the famous '60s drag racer, said he once saw a guy wearing a Tommy Ivo T-shirt--at the Taj Mahal in Agra, India! The guy walked by him before Ivo could say Hi. Now wouldn't THAT have blown the guy's mind!

Great story about a guy close to my own heart. Frank Borman was a member of the church I attended (rigorously, per my mother) as a kid: St Christopher's Episcopal Church in League City, Texas. I still remember how different everything suddenly was after the Apollo 8 flight. He was just a man more or less like any other before, but much closer to God and Jesus Christ in my 8 year old eyes after. One of the nicer adults, I definitely remember that much about him. I am a lifelong Frank Borman fan, guess you could say.

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Cheers,
Kurt Maurer
League City, Texas

PIC, Ford 6600 pulling Rhino batwing up and down the runway

Chris,

You have no idea how right you are...... My wife pointed this out to me.

Totally kicking myself.

Must admit that I was a tad slow on the draw on that one.

Craig

Years ago, Ober and the rest of us were working the Stinson Air show parking aircraft for the show and we then heard somebody on the approach. A polished T-6 popped out of the clouds and landed. The Col and his wife landed. He then jumped out helped us on the ramp. I saw him many times afterward at the restaurant on the airport at Las Cruces, NM...

Yep very nice man and wife. Do not remember how he came to be attending our show. Did you invite specifically him, or someone else? Didn't he bring the Mustang one year also?
You were the fighter guy, I worked on everything else so I am too old to remember what happened!

I've mentioned this before here, but it's a good excuse to tell it again...

Several years back, Borman and his wife would fly their Mustang from New Mexico to the Dyess airshow.

I was impressed not only with the Colonel, but Mrs. Borman.
Most women her age idea of adventure would be driving a Lexus to a lunch at "the club", but she willingly flew in the cramped and noisy back seat of a WWII fighter for a couple of hours. She seemed the type of wife you'd hope a fighter pilot/astronaut would have....game for anything. I was doing TV at the time and the next year I did a brief story on her and Frank. I think I got to know her well, and had a nice couple of chats with her. The colonel was off doing display pilot briefings and such.

Yes, he's a fighter pilot and astronaut...but she's great!!!

Glad to hear he's well, hope she is too.
If anyone here knows them, please give them my best.

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Remember the vets, the wonderful planes they flew and their sacrifices for a future many of them did not live to see.
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I figure if you wanted my opinion on items unrelated to this forum, you'd ask for it.

My there I was story happened about 10-years ago at the USAFM. I was in the Vietnam era section and was standing back from the Robin Olds F-4 to get a photo with most of the plane in it. But there was this small group of people standing by the nose so I put my camera down to wait for them to move on before I took my photo. I started looking at the group and noticed they were all elderly with a couple in wheel chairs. Then I noticed the person they were all looking at and listening to - it was Robin Olds! I was so dumbstruck I just stood there and watched and never thought about taking a photo with him in it standing in front of his Phantom.