Yellow Rose Travel and Events
MIDLAND
AIRSHOW 2006
OCTOBER 6-8
By Zac Armstrong
From the time I joined the CAF about a year ago I have heard nothing but the stories from the annual Midland Airsho. The stories ranged from infamous parties at the Officer’s Club, the great display of the CAF’s prowess in the ability to manage the largest fleet of operational WWII aircraft, and most importantly the great examples of flying, fellowship, and camaraderie that are evident when we take our wonderful airplanes places.
Feeling the time was right (and with much persuading from various members of the wing and the squadron) I managed to take off 3 days from work and head to Midland on the Rose. Needless to say I was not disappointed on the trip.
The week prior to Airsho, small squawks were fixed on the planes as everyone got their birds up and running. The Rose was no exception as the usual oil leaks had to be fixed and the bird washed on Wednesday with a maintenance flight following shortly behind in close
order.
We left on Friday hoping to get to the show before the majority of the other participants, but on our arrival it seemed the rest of the participants had the same idea as the ramp was already filling up quite nicely. The Rose was joined by the Kate, U-3, U-11, Calvin’s T-6, and the Zero which are all housed in the CENTEX hangar (sorry if I missed anyone else).
Airsho went off without a hitch this year with participation from both airplanes and crowds being well above average according to the well seasoned veterans. According to our very own Greg Young and Curtis Hall, the PX could not have been in a better location and the Rose did quite well. These guys should know as they manned the PX religiously, bearing wind, dust, and throngs of people!
The Rose flew twice each day for demos during Airsho and once on Saturday evening for a ride for hire. With the Rose flying twice the ramp was sanitized early on both days so cockpit tours were only to the early risers.
Of course, the annual trip to Midland would not be complete without the trips to the Officer’s Club (thankfully no one forgot to remove their cover to my knowledge) and the subsequent trips to the Legion, of which I have learned
Jim Liles is extremely well known there for some odd reason!
Personally, I was impressed at the amount of airplanes that showed up for the Airsho. I have never seen so many T-6s fly in formation and was literally speechless at the “Arsenal of Democracy” demo (of which the Rose was a part of). All of the airplanes that showed up were in great shape and, to be quite honest, I didn’t realize the CAF had the number of airplanes that it does.
The Tora Tora Tora show was out in force and did an excellent job as usual bringing the crowds to their feet along with the Doolittle Raid Reenactment that followed shortly afterwards.
I know most of the seasoned air show groupies met old friends and I was able to make many new ones as everyone would get together in the evening and “talk shop.” The U-3, U-11, and Calvin’s T-6 left Sunday afternoon to get back before some weather, and the Rose made an attempt to leave Monday morning, but delayed by weather, got back a little later than expected.
Overall, I would say a great time was had by all and I am honored that I have been able to participate in this tradition and am looking forward to it next year as well!
FREDERICKSBURG FLY-IN
OCTOBER 14-15
By Zac Armstrong
I can honestly say that I am one of the privileged ones to be able to work with the Yellow Rose and help educate people about her during air shows and fly-ins. Looking forward to this past weekend with the “Tex" Hill Wing’s annual CAF Fly-In in Fredericksburg, and feeling that I am a somewhat experienced air show veteran, I was ready for anything.
Of course, anything happened and I was thrown for a loop this weekend. Due to issues with the pilots, the Rose was brought up on Friday, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The majority of the crew was to assemble on Saturday so we could open up the Rose for the static display on the ramp.
There was only one problem: when everyone rolled out of bed on Saturday morning we were greeted by an extremely low overcast layer with rain, drizzle, and a nice biting wind that made things quite chilly.
As the crews approached the airport we were to find there were only about five aircraft on the ramp for display as the majority of the planes were due to arrive on Saturday with the weather turning
foul.
Having the dedicated crew that she does, the Rose was opened up and the die hard aviation fans were able to take a look inside and outside the airplane despite the inclement weather. To my knowledge, the only other airplane that was opened was the Bluebonnet Belle which had shown up on Wednesday.
The turnout for the show was actually surprisingly good (considering the weather) with a steady stream of people
filtering in and out of the airport to look at the planes. Surprisingly enough Greg Young and I were able to meet several WWII veterans in the small town of Fredericksburg with one “young” man having flown over fifty missions on the B-25 in Africa (he has since signed the bomb bay as tradition dictates).
Around 5 pm the plane was buttoned up, the weather forecast showed no signs of heavy rain or hail so the Rose was left to get a soaking bath. The fun started that
evening with the Gardner’s, Julie and David, Greg, Letty, and I partaking in the festivities.
First off, for this Hill Country Implant I have never been to Fredericksburg and am looking forward to the Christmas Party for the Rose when I get to go back. It is a great town that has a great airport.
After warming up at the local brewery we headed to the Officer’s Club at the Hangar Hotel. Here we found that having a muddy propeller doesn’t
necessarily mean that you had a gear up landing and can actually be a very good thing!
I was introduced to the game of CRUD (kind of) and we played well into the night causing the other patrons in the bar to have a show as they watched us play. After a slow start on Sunday (with the weather not improving much), the Belle was closed and most of the crews headed home.
In fine form, the Rose crew was the last to leave with Greg and I staying until around 3:30 in the afternoon giving cockpit tours and talking with the members from the Tex Hill Wing.
Despite the rain and the rather poor turnout, I can speak for myself and say that I had a blast. I am looking forward to going back and the Rose gave a fine show, along with her crew of course!
FUNERAL FLYOVER AT FORT SAM HOUSTON
By Ron Iberg
Major (Ret) Col (CAF) Richard Meeks was interned at Ft. Sam Houston on Novemeber 20th, 2006 . In attendance were his wife, his ex-wife, son, daughter, two grandchildren, plus approximately twenty other relatives and friends. I was there with Jack Reeves and Chuck Clayton. Between the three of us, we were “ground control” for the flyover of the Rose at the burial ceremony.
Rich joined the CAF and the CENTEX Wing in the mid-70s as he was retiring from the USAF. He attended and participated in several airshows with CENTEX
aircraft. He helped with the restoration and testing on the B-25 that became the Yellow Rose. Rich left the San Marcos CAF around 1980. I was at the ceremony in CAF uniform with pictures of Richard during his flying years with the Wing and showed them to the family at a barbeque in his honor after the burial. His family and friends were deeply touched that the memorial flyover was done by an aircraft that he loved, and helped restore, 30 years earlier. Thanks to Grant Lannon, Ken Udcoff, and Jim Liles (with Curtis Hall and Greg Young as pax) for flying the aircraft to San Antonio from San Marcos.
Comment from Grant who flew the aircraft: I have maintained that God loves veterans
because we always end up at the right place and time for memorial ceremonies despite weather and other adverse conditions. We pulled the props on the Rose about 30 minutes before takeoff (unusually early—thanks Jim) and encountered hydraulic lock—very rare on the Rose. Jim Liles drained the oil from #8
cylinder and we made the takeoff time!!!
NEW BRAUNFELS – OCTOBER 20 AND 21
By Greg Young
On October 20; the Yellow Rose set out from San Marcos on a two fold mission. Her
initial crew was Grant Lannon, Ken Udcoff, Jim Liles, Curtis Hall, and Greg Young. The initial part of the mission was a flyover of a funeral service being held at Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio. This would be in honor of Richard Meeks, a retired Air Force officer and CAF member. As this writer's birthday was on that day, I could not think of a better way to celebrate my birthday than fly in the Rose (of course, she is older than me) and honor all of the veterans who are buried at Ft. Sam including my brother, a Navy Vietnam veteran. We made a timely arrival in the San Antonio area but had to hold in a circling pattern for the proper time to flyover. As we circled I looked down at the SAPD Eastside substation where I worked for 5 1/2 years. Several of my former co-workers later mentioned seeing the Rose circling. Jack Reeves, Chuck Clayton, and Ron Iberg were the ground crew at the cemetery and at the proper time we were called in and did the flyover. That being completed we headed back north over Randolph AFB and landed at the New Braunfels airport to complete the second part of our mission; The Moonlight Fund Airshow which was going to be held the next day on October 21. This show benefited the Moonlight Fund which was started by Henry Coffen. Henry was badly burned when he had to bail out of his aerobatic airplane. He was treated at Brooke Army Medical Center and was then motivated to establish a fund to assist fellow burn victims with their various needs. We secured the Rose and I started to drive Grant and Jim back to San Marcos with an intermediate stop in beautiful downtown Barbarossa at the hotspot in town, THE TROUGH. We encountered a crew of four Air Force guys who had flown in a Lear C21 from Andrews AFB outside Washington DC. Their crew was shown typical Texan Yellow Rose hospitality for a couple of hours before we headed on. Ken, Curtis, and I spent the night in Seguin and went out to the airport to find Mike Francis was already there getting our girl ready for the day. Other Rose members who arrived to help included our fearless leader, Ron Dietes, Jack Reeves, Jerry Taylor, Zac Armstrong, and Letty Dietes who was doing it for the team even though she was not feeling well. The Rose definitely shone there that day, cockpit tour lines were endless and PX
sales cleared off the tables like no other previous show I had been to. As I was doing cockpit tours I looked out towards the highway leading into the airport and it seemed there was an endless line of cars for quite awhile. The airshow started and had quite a few attractions despite competing with the Houston airshow. My personal highlight of the show besides of course the Rose, was the guy from North Dakota who flew his 1946 Interstate Cadet in some zany aerobatics including the loss of an aileron. I had seen this guy perform before about 2 months ago in
Abbotsford, Canada and his flying skills were tremendous, losing the aileron is a planned part of
the show but it catches the spectator off guard thinking it is an accidental loss. Ron, Ken, and Jack took the Rose up for her display which consisted of several relatively high passes. Upon landing, the Rose continued to be open for tours and PX sales. In Rose tradition, the crew was at it until the gates closed. Ron, Ken, Mike Francis, and Curtis than flew the Rose
back to her home. Judging from the crowds, it is safe to say that the show produced positve results for a worthwhile cause.
