“A mile of road will take you one mile. A mile of runway will take you anywhere.” No one is quite sure who said this first—but I am guessing when they did—they were looking through the propeller arc of a J3 Cub,and the airplane’s wheels were just rising above the dew on a narrow green patch of grass somewhere in Ohio.
The light of the mainstream media often shines brightly on the jet drivers,millionaires and astronauts. But what most people don’t know is that you are as likely to find them here,at the local airfield with the other legends and leagues of hard-working folks whose lives are deeply rooted in the nation’s birthplace of aviation.
Among them are the freight dogs,restorers,crop dusters,mechanics,parachute packers,blimp and balloon drivers,flight instructors,students,sport pilots,and airfield operators. They all feed their families and love of aviation by living and working around the flying machines that most of us see only as specks in the early morning’s blue sky. Our effort will improve the public understanding and awareness of general aviation through the creation of digital narratives and stories designed to appeal to all.
Have an adventure to share? Want to see a feature story about a favorite airport,airplane,or someone you know? Send us your best photography? Send us your best video? Send us your best sorties,ideas,news and events? We will feature the work of our students,citizen journalists,aviation enthusiasts,professional writers,reporters,videographers and photographers.
Free subscribers can comment on the Stories That Fly main site. Free subscribers can also subscribe to the Stories That Fly YouTube channel to upload and comment on feature videos. Free subscribers can also upload images to the Stories That Fly community Flicker image gallery and interact with us via Twitter.
We will produce a wide variety of photo stories and essays,video and audio for the Web,PBS and NPR broadcasts. A book project is also in the works for next year.
Here,you’ll land a float plane on the Allegheny River. You’ll launch and retrieve a hot-air balloon. You’ll discover a small country airfield and stand on a hangar roof to take photos as an astronaut’s 15-year old daughter flies her first airplane. You’ll visit a family-run flight school,have a meal at the airport diner and learn how to fly a tail dragger.
Along the way,you’ll meet aviation enthusiasts like yourself. You are now one among the many remarkable people who make general aviation a worldwide community.