Page 5 - Dec24

Time to Say Goodbye
by Tom Clements
This is my last article for King Air magazine. I have been a regular contributor here since 2011 ... 13 years. The magazine has provided a perfect forum for sharing my 50-plus years of King Air flying and instructing experience. I will always be grateful for the leadership and guidance of the magazine’s editor, Kim Blonigen. Her oversight and direction have been delightfully presented and she has suggested many small – and some large – improvements to my articles. It is a coincidence that she is also retiring from the magazine, though MeLinda Schnyder will be an excellent replacement. You may know that she has already written many interesting and factual articles for the magazine.
How I got started
God has blessed me with a truly amazing and satisfying life. I am sure some of us were birds in a previous life! As a child, I always gazed skyward whenever I heard an airplane passing overhead. Living almost directly on the airway between Indianapolis, Indiana, and Dayton, Ohio, gave me daily opportunities to view the lovely progress of DC-3s as they passed overhead. My great uncle, Claud Stanley, who lived next door, developed a strong flying interest later in his life and bought a Cessna 170A and, later, a 195. My first ride in a small airplane was with Emerson Western, his pilot, in
the 195 on a trip to Uncle Claud’s and Aunt Deedie’s summer home in Charlevoix, Michigan. My mother’s sister and her family resided in North Carolina and we often flew in a Piedmont Airlines DC-3 to visit.
Why I remained so fascinated and interested in flying will forever remain a mystery because, first, I always got airsick on these flights! Once the barf bag had been used, though, all was well with me, and I enjoyed the flying experience. Second, due to a head cold, I once had difficulty clearing my ears during the descents at the intermediate Piedmont stops on our way to North Carolina. Dang! What’s that nail
DECEMBER 2024
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 3