Ideas from Mark Stout

Remembering Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, who passed today. While I never met him, I did enjoy how he spent some of his money. This post from 2015.

A few weeks ago I toured the EAA's B-17 when it visited the Manassas Airport . Of course I took our 360 camera. Post from RICOH THETA. - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA Post from RICOH THETA. - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA Post from RICOH THETA. - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA Post from RICOH THETA. - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA I'd previously flew on the EAA's Ford Tri-Motor .

I've written here many times about visiting aviation museums. Today, chatting online with a friend about China's new Flying Boat that is as big as a Boeing 737, I realized I'd never written about touring a Short Solent Mk. III Flying Boat at the Oakland Aviation Museum at the Oakland, California airport. It must have been sometime in 1999. My wife was working a few hours at her job with a network equipment manufacturer on a Saturday in San Leandro. Our nine year old son and I dropped her off, then went to look for something to do while she worked. I'd ridden my bike past the museum many times, but never stopped in. I explained to my son who Amelia Earhart was as we looked at an Electra aircraft similar to the one Earhart flew when she departed on her fateful flight from Oakland in 1937. Oddly, I do not see that aircraft on their current list of aircraft on display. Update 7-27-2016: The museum director responded to my email and told me the Electra is now at...

I just realized I never mentioned the video I shot two years ago of my ride in a Ford Tri-motor when it came to the Manassas, Virginia airport. I shot it entirely through Google Glass. The aircraft is operated by the EAA and regularly tours the country offering rides .

I do not think I ever shared these photos here.  I went out to the National Air & Space Museum near Dulles Airport to shoot some panorama and spherical photos with my phone, an LG G3, for a Family Tech column . I have the photos in a Google Photo Shared Album .

What do you do if you're a bizillionaire, and in touch with your inner little boy? Well, you might buy a really big yacht , old tanks, rockets and cool old airplanes.   And you might invest in artificial intelligence, brain science, and other really cool things. I wasn't invited to hang out on any of the yachts but last Sunday I was in Seattle, and visited Paul Allen's (Microsoft co-founder) Flying Heritage Collection  at Paine Field in Everette, Washington. This collection does something interesting.  Each aircraft's informational plaque explains not only the model of aircraft, but the history of this particular aircraft. With only a few exceptions, each of these aircraft are in flyable condition, and do fly once a year.  I saw one aircraft that was the sole surviving aircraft of its type, so while flyable, it was not flown.     The wreck of a Japanese Zero found in New Guineau A restored Zero found in much the same c...

Inspired after reading David McCullough's "The Wright Brothers" , I have visited several significant Wright Brother's sites including : Huffman Prairie - site near Dayton where the brother's tested their planes starting in 1904 And on a recent Smithsonian Bus Tour :  The 1903 Flyer at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington DC Fort Meyer, Virginia - site of the Wright's demonstration to the US Army in 1908 College Park Airport in Maryland - oldest airport in world. Began with the Wright's teaching Army officers to fly. As you can see, there is a glaring omission from my Wright pilgrimages.  And it is even more embarrassing as that I've lived within a four hour drive of the Outer Banks for 16 years. Two days ago, I finally visited Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

We found ourselves driving through Dayton, Ohio on I-70 Sunday, so I couldn't resist the urge to see Huffman Prairie, where the Wright Brothers tested airplanes where, according to Wikipedia , the brothers "made about 150 flights at the field in 1904–1905, leading to development of the 1905 Wright Flyer III , which they considered to be the first practical airplane." The Wright's leased the property outside Dayton so they could take the streetcar out to the site. Replica's of their workshop and the catapult they used to get the planes in the air are onsite.

Yesterday, I went on a day long tour of early aviation artifacts and sites located in the Washington DC area organized by Smithsonian Associates  ( link to tour ) The tour was lead by Paul Glenshaw .  Paul was acknowledged for his help by David McCullough in his book :" The Wright Brothers ", a book I read in preparation of this tour. We first visited the National Air and Space Museum to view the early Wright gliders, and of course,the 1903 Wright Flyer. We also saw Lilienthal's early glider, and the Langley Aerodrome.  #5 .  This aircraft was flown successfully unmanned near my home, off of Chopawamsic Island  ( map ) itself just off Quantico Marine Base. The next visit was the Smithsonian Castle.  The garden there was the site of Professor Langley's construction of the Aerodrome.   ' Afterwards we visited Haines Point , site of the unsuccessful attempt to fly the powered Aerodrome by pilot Charles Manly. Next was ...

Jared Eno s' wonderful colorized edition of Wilber Wright at Kitty Hawk in the 1903 Glider just three days before the first powered flight.  The colorization is amazing. Wilbur Wright clings to his damaged flying machine after an unsuccessful trial on December 14, 1903 (note how white his knuckles are from gripping the machine). Taken in the Kill Devil Hills, Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Photo licensed by Jared Enos under Creative Commons /

For most people their sole knowledge of giant, rigid airships is the Hindenberg and the fire that destroyed it. How many know that the US Navy once had a small fleet of these giant cruisers of the air?  They are all gone now. The one tie we have had to this unique facet of aviation history is a few former hangers.  I had the pleasure a dozen years ago to go inside Moffett Field's Hangar One.  Before that I loved driving by on 101 and seeing it standing open. Now sad news that it is being torn down .