Historic flight re-creation stops here

By Kevin Cloe, Publisher

Members of the Wickenburg EAA chapter join J.W. French (center, left) around his Acro Sport biplane that he is flying around the country to complete his 48-state flight that re-created Sam Burgess’1974 flight. French visited with the local flying enthusiasts at a member’s home late last week in Aguila’s Eagles Roost airpark, located about 25 miles east of Wickenburg.

An overnight stay in Aguila last week was scheduled as part of J.W. French’s re-creation of an historic flight accomplished 34 years ago.

French, a resident of Ft. Myers, Fla., landed his handcrafted Acro Sport biplane at the Eagles Roost airstrip in Aguila Friday morning (June 27), had lunch in Wickenburg, visited with some local aviation enthusiasts that night, and then took off for Hurricane, Utah, the next day.

It was part of his 10-state trip to complete his previous 38-state flight in 2005 that was designed to honor his friend Sam Burgess, who accomplished his 48-state trip in 1974 after his historic 50-state jaunt in 1970 in his homemade BŸcker Jungmeister.

According to French, Burgess was the first pilot to ever touch down in all 50 states using a homemade aircraft. The 71-year-old Florida resident later met and befriended Burgess in 1976, so French’s latest venture is titled the Sam Burgess Memorial Junket.

French had to abandon his previous effort to touch down in the nation’s lower 48 states three years ago when his plane didn’t have enough power to clear the mountain ranges in Montana. With encouragement from Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Founder Paul Pobernezny, who offered his Acro Sport biplane for the trip, French started his 10-state hop that will end just prior to the EAA’s Annual AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wis., which begins July 28. Burgess also piloted an Acro Sport during his 1974 trip.

After leaving from his home in Florida on June 15, French’s actual start of the renewed flight began in Arizona. The remaining states will be Nevada, California, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. When he lands in South Dakota, it will be State No. 48 of his extended trip.

Arizona was his 40th state to visit, but he first landed in San Manuel, Casa Grande and Payson before arriving in Aguila.

“There are many interesting people and many interesting airplanes in that airpark (Eagles Roost),” he wrote in his daily Internet blog that can be viewed at rvnewsletter.blogspot.com.

His host Monroe McDonald of the Wickenburg EAA chapter brought him into Wickenburg for lunch and gave him a glimpse of history along the way.

“Monroe took me into Wickenburg to see the sights, and on the way I stopped and took a picture of the entrance sign to the abandoned airfield (Forepaugh) where Paul Poberezny took glider training in WWII,” French wrote. “The Wickenburg chapter members gathered for an ice cream social and asked me to share my memories of the life and times of Sam Burgess. I am still amazed at the number of people I meet who knew and respected Sam.”

Before French started his 10-state flight, Poberezny encouraged all the EAA chapters along the way to serve as his hosts during his rest stops. The Wickenburg chapter, whose membership consists of 33 flying enthusiasts - with about half residing at the Eagles Roost airpark - was the 11th of the planned 25 visits during the trip.

EAA is a national organization whose members have a wide range of aviation interests and backgrounds. The organization was founded in 1953 by a group of individuals in Milwaukee, Wis., who were interested in building their own airplanes.

Through the decades, EAA expanded its mission to include antiques, classic, warbirds, aerobatic aircraft, ultralights, helicopters and contemporary manufactured aircraft.

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