Fascinating story.

https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all-news/2014/september/pilot/f_bonanza

Edited October 20, 20205 yr by fppilot

Thanks for sharing! What a great read. A generation that is fading fast... and not many to pick up the slack anymore...

Ta Frank- C

I'd love to see those wingtips in MSFS 😛

On 10/20/2020 at 11:30 AM, ThomseN_inc said:

I'd love to see those wingtips in MSFS 😛

Got to bump this one.

Can someone produce this repaint, please.

Thanks.

Edited October 21, 20205 yr by DJJose

Great short read. Thanks for sharing.

3 hours ago, Cmcollazo71 said:

Great short read. Thanks for sharing.

As a Viet Nam era veteran and military GA pilot. this caught my eye when it was published.  Have not forgotten it.  Have to say the Robert Young Turbo Bonanza woke me up to repost this.  It is quite a fascinating story.  I took a 3 hour IFR on top trip today in MFS 2020 and did not see ground scenery from shortly after takeoff until I broke through at my destination at 600 ft.  On top that long gets quite boring.  But when reading the mention of these VN era turbo Bonanza flights averaging 6.3 hours the reality sets in. 

Powerful help they had music to listen to.

I worked a lot of midnight to 8 am shifts at an AAF that was closed at night except for emergencies.  We were there primarily to feed hourly and interim special weather observations into the nationwide weather system.  Got very boring.  Companions were an on-shift ATC, and an airports ground OPS specialist.  We rotated shifts every 4 to 5 days.  During the 4 pm to midnight shifts I could listen to sports broadcasts literally year round, picking up those 100,000 watt Group W Westinghouse stations like WMAQ WCCO, WLS, WSB, KDKA, WLW, WFIL, WOWO in Ft Wayne, Indiana, and others.  Those stations' broadcast wattage increased to 100K watts at sundown.  Baseball, hockey, college basketball.  Always happy there was overlap in the seasons.  But there was nothing but music after the games ended......  And dare not fall asleep.

Edited October 21, 20205 yr by fppilot

Great story. Maybe somebody will paint that US Air Force livery for the Turbo-nanza.

51 minutes ago, dobee51 said:

Great story. Maybe somebody will paint that US Air Force livery for the Turbo-nanza.

Here is a link to more images of the QU-22B.  
https://www.google.com/search?q=QU–22B&rlz=1C1CHBD_enUS918US918&sxsrf=ALeKk00VjULthRkX7XgGIQDXRpU4GjaxNw:1603333243493&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=PcReb4aShkVifM%2C-P-THEq_blVOCM%2C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kSm1_wLwWtEKnuTlPX036ASPcTZ2Q&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjjgr3jkcfsAhW6mnIEHVx8ClAQ9QF6BAgFECk&biw=2048&bih=1010#imgrc=PcReb4aShkVifM

There have been some great military GA repaints.  Here is one for FSX by Ron Attwood that I believe may be the best repaint ever done.  It is exact down to the smallest information and caution decals on the wings, cowlings, and fuselage, and the rescue cutout outline around the left rear window. 

It was one of these T-42s (Beech Baron 55) in which I acquired my multi and instrument ratings. 74 hours in type. That was stateside in the same timeframe as what is described in this topic's AOPA turbo Bonanza article.

Someone else did a nice repaint of an O-2 military 337 Skymaster variant.  The same O-2 featured in the Viet Nam based Gene Hackman, Danny Glover movie "Bat-21".  One of my favorite movies ever, second perhaps only to Hoosiers, Patton, and Breaking Away.  (Hint: I am a Patton and a native Hoosier)

I too would love to see a repaint of the Turbo Bonanza featured in this AOPA article.

Edited October 22, 20205 yr by fppilot

2 hours ago, fppilot said:

As a Viet Nam era veteran and military GA pilot.

Thank you for your service.

My dad served in Vietnam, Korea and WWll after enlisting at 16 (no one quipped about exact ages considering the circumstances).

Thanks for sharing your story.