For me, only about forty years, but a day at Chino provided the most memorable flying day of my life. What was expected to be a quick 20 minute trip in a Stearman turned into a 90 minute adventure which included formation flying, with two others, aerobatics and tail chasing at low level.
The absolute highlight came as we were returning to Chino, I was told to catch up the others and move up on the right of the leader. As we inched closer I kept expecting to hear the voice from the rear cockpit saying “I’ve got it”. As nothing was said, I eventually tucked in behind the starboard wing of the leader and realised that this wonderful guy was letting me fly his precious Stearman within a few feet of disaster. This was my one and only experience of close formation flying and I still have a grin on my face four years later. To cap it all, we were overtaken by two P51’s just as we lined up for a run in and break.
The flight was preceded by a meeting of “The Squadron” which vividly demonstrated the differences between flying in the States and UK. Top of the agenda was a discussion about the FAA grant for a new grass runway at Chino WITH SPRINKLERS to keep it nice and soft. At the end of the meeting some old chap invited us to a hangar to look at a L39. I found myself walking across with this old man and I discovered it was none other than Lee Irwin, who was building a “new” P51 every six months. He had orders for the next five years!
What a guy! What a place! What a day!!!!