Sun-N-Fun

Most all of ITEC was down in Lakeland at the Sun-N-Fun air show so ITEC was pretty quiet.  Ryan and I were suppose to fly down in the Cessna 150 but due to weather we were unable to fly down.  In fact, the weather was so bad, it produced several tornados, one of them actually going through the air show.  As far as I know, 40 planes have severe damage to them and there are a few others that have minor damage.  Unfortunately, one of those planes was I-TEC’s Zenith 801 that we had up for sale.  There are some things that we can save from it like the engine and possibly the fuselage, but other than that, it is a complete loss.

Friday morning, Ryan and I were able to fly down; the weather was really nice, and we had a pretty good tailwind so we made the flight relatively quickly.  I got to do about half the flying while Ryan was reading the procedures and stuff for landing there.  I must say, I do feel pretty bad for the guys in the tower that have to tell us what to do and where to land and all that loveliness.  There were hundreds, if not thousands, of aircrafts there, it was a big fly in, pilots from all around were flying in to this event. it is called, “The Spring Break for Pilots”.

The airport was closed so that the Blue Angels could practice so we had to stay in a holding pattern for about 20 minutes, which pretty much means we were flying in a huge circle around a lake with about 15 other planes.  We finally landed, set up camp and headed to I-TEC’s booth. They were just getting things set up and setting things out in the sun.  Turns out, everything was soaked in the rainstorm the day before and everything was laying out to dry.  All our fliers, TV where the videos of the Maverick were playing, books, DVDs, etc, were wet but not entirely destroyed so we put them all in the sun to dry.  I put on a Maverick shirt and started passing out fliers and talking to people about the Maverick.  

No sooner had I started, then Troy came up and asked me if I wanted to go with Steve and Jamie on their trip.  After finding out that we would be back in time for my trip to the Village, I said yes. The trouble was, I had flown down, not driven, and we were suppose to leave the next morning.  This wouldn’t normally have been too big of a deal (esp. if I had a Maverick.) Ryan likes to fly as much as I do if not more, and I am sure that he would have flown me back, the problem was that the airport was closed for the day.  But God planned ahead for me, Jesse had both his car and suburban at the campground so I was able to drive his car back that night.  

So, since I was not going to be at the air show for the next 3 days, I decided not to work the booth and to have a look around.  Jesse had told me to bring all my medical stuff cause a guy at the FAA booth that might be able to help me get my medical.  I suppose it was worth a try, but it was a no go, he was able to tell me that all my medical stuff was in the FAA system and ready to review, and he sent a few emails to let them know I was asking about it and to try to get it pushed through.  

I was told of an organization called Stallion 51 by one of my mentors who used to work for them about 20 years ago.  I was looking for them to talk to them and see if they remembered Nathanael and to get to know them.  They are based in Orlando which is about 2 hours or so away and it would be great to get down there and see what they are doing.  I was watching the new airforce jet called the Raptor fly around and do its demonstration and then another plane started flying in formation with it.  It was an older WWII P-51 bomber, and when they announced it, they said that it was with Stallion 51.  So, now I knew that they were there, but when I went to go meet the pilot, there were hundreds of people that were wanting an autograph or picture so I stood there waiting for a while. I was getting close when a guy came up and grabbed my shoulder and asked what my name was.  I noticed that he had a Stallion 51 shirt on and his name tag said he was a medical guy for them. When I told him my name, he asked if I had met Lee, the pilot, yet.  When I said no, he pulled me up to the front and introduced me to him

“Hey Lee, this is Austin, he is training to become a pilot”

It took me a moment to come up with something to say, not only cause I had just been drug through the remaining crowd of fans, but my mind was reeling.  How did he know that I was training to become a pilot?  He was right of course, I only have 8 lessons left and half of them are solo, if I had my medical, I could have easily had my license by the end of the month of March.  

Turns out that Lee did remember Nathanael, and we talked for a little while about aviation before I took my leave.  However, I didn’t get the chance to walk more than a step.  The guy who introduced me dragged me over to a spot between the planes where a few boxes were. He asked if I had any brothers, I said I had a younger brother named Elijah.  He then handed me not one, but 4 books that are about these planes. There are pictures of the planes and their pilots from WWII and a bunch of information about them.  Ryan’s grandfather races these planes and we found a picture of his dad flying one and his grandfather flying one.  I thanked him then started to ask him about medical stuff, I explained that I was having problems getting my medical and explained my past heart issues briefly and told him that I had talked to the FAA and what they have told me.  He handed me a card and said,

“Don’t go to them, come to me, they do it for a job, I do it for a hobby.”

This guy has credentials a mile long, he has done physicals for astronauts, military jet pilots… the list goes on.  We were about to walk away, when stopped him and asked,

“How did you know that I was training to be a pilot?”

He shrugged his shoulders and said,

“Buddy, I do this for a living, I could just tell.” And he walked off

I walked away completely in awe of how God works.  I was honestly getting tired of waiting to talk to this guy.  This was my only day that I was going to be at the air show and I wanted to go have a look at some other booths.  In fact I did leave and then for some reason came back to it.  I would have missed God if I would have not gone over there. And then, I had the strangest thought that shot through my subconscious, when that guy grabbed my shoulder.  When I turned and saw him, my first thought, was "This guy is an angel."  I was once again reminded that God is all around us, if we only keep our eyes open to see it.  I was reminded of so many things that day, and as I drove up to Dunnellon late that night, I was astonished, and in awe of who God was and how He works, and most importantly, how much He loves His children.

Steve, Jamie and I are about to land in Dunnellon, I am in the back seat of the RV 10 behind Jamie.  It has been a wonderful trip, I will try to write about it before I leave here.  I am flying commercially out of Orlando on Thursday to the village for my friends, Johnny and Maranatha’s wedding.  I love and miss you all, cant wait to see you!!

Your brother in Christ,

Austin