SPIRIT OF GIRL SENDS FORMER PILOT SOARING.Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
This is a story of respect and admiration - of a pioneer woman aviator and a 15-year-old Lancaster girl who dreams of leading the first mission to Mars. They met for the first time last weekend on the tarmac of Van Nuys Airport Van Nuys Airport (IATA: VNY, ICAO: KVNY, FAA LID: VNY) is a public airport located in Van Nuys, California in the San Fernando Valley, within the Los Angeles city limits. in front of an old World War II B-17 that was barnstorming
Barnstorming airports in the Western states. It was media day, and the Experimental Aircraft Association, which owns and operates the plane, was giving free rides to the media before the public had a chance at an hour's flight for $350. Expensive, but understandable, since it takes thousands of dollars to underwrite the flight of this historic aircraft around the country. Mary Lou Neale of Newhall, a former WASP - Women Airforce Service Pilots The Women Airforce Service Pilots, also known as WASP, and the predecessor groups the Women’s Flying Training Detachment (WFTD) and the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron - from World War II had been invited to the media event. So had Katrina Mumaw of Lancaster - billed as the fastest kid on Earth because of her many flights in jet aircraft and speed records she's set since she began flying at 8. The kid and the pioneer struck up a conversation. Then, they struck up a friendship. Katrina was enthralled en·thrall tr.v. en·thralled, en·thrall·ing, en·thralls 1. To hold spellbound; captivate: The magic show enthralled the audience. 2. To enslave. by Mary Lou's reminiscing of what it was like for a woman to enter a man's world back in 1939 and receive pilot training. ``There was a shortage of pilots, and the government was training college boys in a civilian pilot program,'' Mary Lou told her. ``Eleanor Roosevelt and a lot of women didn't think it was fair that no women were being trained, so the government chose one woman for every 10 male pilots being trained. I was one of them. ``After Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor, land-locked harbor, on the southern coast of Oahu island, Hawaii, W of Honolulu; one of the largest and best natural harbors in the E Pacific Ocean. In the vicinity are many U.S. military installations, including the chief U.S. , there was even more of a shortage of pilots, so the government had to use us,'' Mary Lou said. ``We would ferry the planes from the factories to their destinations. I was checked out to help ferry many of the fighter planes, including the B-17.'' Mary Lou thanked the kid for her interest and then wandered off to watch the B-17 pilots get ready to take some media people for a free ride. ``I watched the flights, reminisced a little and was quite content with the couple of hours I spent there and the nice people I met,'' she said from her Newhall home Friday. ``I never expected what happened next.'' What happened next was Katrina, who was invited to take a ride on the B-17, was bothered when she learned that Mary Lou had not been offered a ride. ``She deserved it more than me,'' the kid said. ``She's a pioneer. She made it possible for all the women and girls, like me, who followed her in aviation to go as far as their abilities can take them.'' Katrina, who wants to enter the Air Force Academy, fly jet fighters Jet fighter may refer to:
No one who's seen her fly is betting against her making it. She's got the talent, and she sure has the heart. After she got home from that media day flight, Katrina went straight to the bank and emptied her savings account Savings Account A deposit account intended for funds that are expected to stay in for the short term. A savings account offers lower returns than the market rates. Notes: . She took out $350 and went back to the airport to get Mary Lou Neale her ride. ``When I got there, the word had already come down from the EAA EAA Experimental Aircraft Association EAA European Aluminium Association (Brussels, Belgium) EAA European Acoustics Association EAA Export Administration Act EAA Everglades Agricultural Area EAA European Association of Archaeologists (Experimental Aircraft Association) not to take my money,'' Katrina said Thursday. Ruth Mutti, vice president of the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. chapter of EAA, said that when the kid told them about the oversight, and that she wanted to pay for Mary Lou's flight, they refused the money and wanted to give Mary Lou the flight free. ``She certainly deserved it for all that she has done for women in aviation,'' Mutti said. ``They called and asked me to come back on Sunday before they left because they wanted to give me a ride,'' Mary Lou said. ``They said someone had requested it. ``When I arrived and saw Katrina there, I was so touched. Her offer was so genuine. She's a shy, wonderful kid. She wasn't doing it to show off. ``I wound up having a wonderful time reliving re·live v. re·lived, re·liv·ing, re·lives v.tr. To undergo or experience again, especially in the imagination. v.intr. To live again. Noun 1. the past, stationed right behind the co-pilot all through the flight. ``The whole crew and my six fellow passengers, one an old combat B-17 pilot, could not have been more pleasant,'' Mary Lou said. When the B-17 touched down, the pioneer walked over to the kid and thanked her for the respect and admiration. No, the kid said. Thank you. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Mary Lou Neale, left, a former World War II pilot, got a free trip aboard a B-17 at Van Nuys Airport thanks to the intervention of kindred spirit A Kindred Spirit (真情) was a television drama series that was broadcast on TVB Jade in Hong Kong from May 15, 1995 to November 11, 1999. It is one of the longest running drama shows in Hong Kong television history (the longest being the sitcom Hong Kong 81 series). Katrina Mumaw. |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion