Warbird Information Exchange

Hi Guys,

Perhaps this is a good thread to post my "two cents" worth for one of those rare instances in a person's life that they actually get to meet a "Larger Than Life" hero in Aviation History.

I can relate three of them. So please bear with me.

Back when I was in Tech School getting my A&P tickets, the airport had an annual airshow, and it was customary for the second year guys to work the show as volunteer labor. When it was my turn to do it during my second year, we were pressed into service to work the crowds and help control aircraft movements during the show. Well as luck would have it there were TWO genuine Aviation Legends in attendance. The first one I met was none other than Gregory "Pappy" Boyington. Several of us knew his story and thought of him as a real American Hero. So, we mustered up our courage and went over to speak with him. He was at the show on an autograph tour for his book. So we thought we would ask him to sign an autograph for us or perhaps get our photo's taken with him. Boy oh boy were we disappointed. Since we were just part of the "hired help for the airshow, Mr. Boyington, when we asked him for the autograph and a photo opportunity told us in VERY straight language, that if we weren't going to buy his book then go away ! And, at 9 AM in the morning on a Saturday, you could smell the alcohol around him. He was half in the bag already and it wasn't even noon. He was rude, crude, and socially unaccpetable. He made a very distinct impression on us....and it was definitely negative.

The other American Aviation Legend we met there was 180 degrees from Boyington. Nice, and a true gentleman's gentleman. Myself and 3 other guys were assigned to move the man's aircraft for his upcoming flight display's in them. He took us aside and spoke to us as equals, and he never once looked down his nose at us. His Mustang and his Shrike were moved by us with great care. You guessed it......this fine gentleman is none other than Bob Hoover. He sat with us after the show and talked for a long while before we had to go back to work. And even years later, I met him again at Oshkosh and re-introduced myself to him. And in all of the airshows, people, and things the man had ever done in his life, he still took time to speak with me. I will never forget this Real American Legend and Gentleman !

The last was during my career with my former airline. It seemed some marketing genius had found a way to promote the idea of how well our airlines maintenance and safety progams worked to the flying public. So, they went out and convinced one of Aviation's Living Icon's to do the promotion for them. As I left my manager's office, with our Technical Manager's from the NDT Department where I worked, I found myself face to face with General Chuck Yeager. I was shocked needless to say because he was soft spoken and in person he seemed not to have the ego he had in his autobigraphy. But I was stunned at how he was in stature. Because he isn't a tall man like Bob Hoover. And though I am good sized myself at 6'1", General Yeager seemed as though he didn't even come up to my shoulder height. I was lucky enough to shake his hand and he autographed a short note for me.

I have met other Aviation notables. Former Astronaut Frank Borman, Kermit Weeks, and a few others. But the folks I mentioned and the way I met them are those special ones that stuck in my memory.

For your perusal,

Paul

Thanks for sharing Paul! I'm also glad to hear that I'm not the only one who has had a bad experience meeting Pappy Boyington. I hate to say it but there are a few members here that don't like to hear what type of person he really was. Since he was a war hero (nobody's ever questioned that) some folks think we should talk about him as if he were a saint.

John

So what you are saying is that the TV show had him portrayed correctly.

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Chris Henry
EAA Aviation Museum Manager

To be honest I think the TV show portrayed him as more likeable guy than he was in real life. Of course it's been a long time since I've seen episodes.

John

Col. Bud Anderson...a true gentleman.

My first year volunteering at Oshkosh on the Mustang line, was very hectic and the warbird area was a lot smaller and more crowded then it is now. Back then it was not uncommon to "shuffle" the a/c around during the airshow (to keep like types together who had gotten separated for various reasons), while a lot of the other warbirds were flying the show.

During one afternoon show I was told to stand at one empty parking spot and wait for a pilot (I was not told the name) who would taxi a P51 over to this new spot during the show and to escort him (wing-walk, then park) from one location to this location. Watching the airshow, I felt a tap on my shoulder and there was Col. Anderson, very politely asking me if I would kindly help him and if this was the right spot for the P51. I just about saluted and said "Yes Sir", which made him smile even more.

I knew a bit about about Col. Anderson, both his WWII record and some of his subsequent post-war postings, including his work as a test pilot for some pretty hairy projects. So I felt very privliged as a "newby" to do this line crew work for a triple ace.

Nothing special happened really, and I am sure his taxiing skill probably made me look a lot more experienced than I really was. But in that and every subsequent encounter with Col. Anderson over the years, he has always been very kind and quietly proud. I have enjoyed all my conversations with him and he has always been very gracious about answering my questions, although I try not to ask too many.

Mine came at the 50th anniversery of the B-17 at Boeing Field, I was working the back door of SJ when this women asked me about the tail gunners Position. Her brother was a tail gunner lost when his plane was shot down, she had always wondered about him being trapped in the tail. I took her back and showed her the escape hatch, as I was doing this a tail gunner came by and told her how they practised exiting. She was so happy to fianlly know that her brother didn't have to crawl to the waist to get out. I had to take a break after that.

Norm

Werner Seitz was a Luftwaffe pilot who Obergraffer and I hung around with ain the early 90's. He had lots of stories, usually funny, about life in the Luftwaffe. He told one story about flying a He111 to north Africa on supply runs. He would take cases of "schnapps" and hand out bottles to the ground crews. One time a guy came back to him with tears in his eyes because he had dropped his and broke the bottle. Werner gave him another.
In the mid 90's I had the TBM at the San Marcos, Tx airshow. The CAF He111 was there and the local Centex wing had Werner there to sign autographs and talk about the He111 and other things. That area of Texas has a high concetration of Germans living there. While I was talking to one of the He111 guys, a fellow came up and told a story about getting scnapps in north Africa from a pilot of a He111. He had dropped his and the pilot gave him another. I took him over to where Werner was and they had a reunion. It was a great moment. Ifyou ever met Werner or heard him talk, he always told the best stories about life in the Lutfwaffe.

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Blue Skies,
Doug

www.cavanaughflightmuseum.com

I must have caught Pappy on good days. My first visit to Harlingen's Airshow was in '76. I bought his book & got it autographed. While granted he was busy, he was cordial. Then, in May of '78 at an airshow in Grenada, Ms. he was there selling his wares, among them was a print of Lulu Belle, which I bought & he autographed. He wasn't real busy & asked me about buying his book, which I told him I had gotten a couple of years earlier at Harlingen & he asked if he autographed it. I've heard he could be a cranky old goat, but both of my encounters he wasn't. I have heard that people would come to him asking for his autograph, & if it wasn't something you bought from him, he didn't have time.