Published on: Wednesday, May 20, 2009

The scoop on the planes

By GORDON BOWER
Punta Gorda Herald Editor

Here's the scoop on those planes filling our skys last month

They flew over my house several times. In fact, they flew over just about everybody's house at one time or another, and they became a fixture in the skies over downtown. And, my oh my, did they elicit questions and cause a lot of stiff necks.

I'm talking about those old WW II-vintage airplanes that were in the air during Block Party week. These weren't just a bunch of old planes flying around either, in case you're one of the three or four people who didn't see them. They were usually in groups of four or more and flying in in tight formations. Obviously not amateurs.

And when they were overhead, everybody within shouting distance would tell me I needed to find out who they were and what they were doing here. After all, I'm with the nerwspaper, and I should know these things.

What with Block Party work going on, I would nod my head and promise to get to the bottom of it. Then, I got lucky during Block Party day while I was chatting up Vice Mayor Harvey Goldberg before he went on the West Marion stage to welcome the crowd and kick off the partying.

Harvey joined in the chorus while we were talking, telling me I neeeded to write about the planes. Harvey, however, did more than than just nag me to do a story. He actually knew a local guy, Jim "Zack" Olzacki, who was knowledgeable about the planes and could tell me why they were putting on a free aerial show for us earthlings.

Zack and I finally met up last week at the Charlotte County airport, where I got the complete scoop, Zack had a quick answer to my why question -- they were practicing.

"They," it turns out, are Warbirds, vintage military aircraft flown by members of an organization by that same name that is dedicated to to the preservation and safe operation of ex-military aircraft.

And there are four reasons why they were in Punta Gorda last month. One is that the Florida chapter of the Warbirds actually originated here.

"The Florida chapter was started by a gentleman named Earl Walsh who was from North Fort Myers," Zack told me. "He was a commander in the Navy and still owns and flies a T-28. Our airport was a natural spot since it has good facilities and was a former training field (during WW II)."

"There are 10 or s0 vintage planes based here now," Zack said. "Three T-28s and four or five T-34s."

Another -- Zack himself, who is knowlegeable because he's the prsident of the 500-member-strong Florida chapter.

Zack, who started flying 28 years ago, became involved with old military planes while working for a Fortune 500 company in his previous career. He helped a wealthy plane lover establish a museum called Planes of Fame East in Minneapolis and became its director. He eventually moved to Connecticut and quit flying after the museum owner retired and re-opened the museum in Palm Springs, Cal.

Still hooked on the old birds after retiring to Punta Gorda and with his wife, Lynn, urging him to start flying again, he got in touch with Don Stamp, a local Warbirder who owns a T-6 trainer.

"I started hanging out with the locals, and they eventually asked me to be president," he said.

The third reason -- one of the national organization's two biggest air shows is in Lakeland, Fla.. It's called the Sun and Fun Air Show, and it's held in late April every year.

Zack said, "The vast majority of Warbirds pilots are active duty or retired former military pilots or air line pilots. Their training and practice here was for the Sun and Fun show."

And, make no mistake, practice is a necessity for tight-formation flying, even for skilled pilots.

"There are five or 6 base formations," Zack said. "Some require precision timing to get into. When you have 20, 30 or 40 planes, it gets considerably more complicated."

There are a lot of places in Florida where the Warbirds could practice, and, in fact, the Charlotte County Airport has been alternating with the airport in Ocala, Fla. Our airport was the designated practice site in 2008, and Ocala was, in fact, supposed to be the practice rendezvous this year, with Punta Gorda hoping to be in the official rotation again in 2010.

But a funny thing happened to Ocala's plans; half of the Warbirds in Florida came here instead.

"The Ocala gathering is starting to deteriorate," Zack said. "This is a better airport with a better runway and better facilities. Plus the support from the city was fantastic. It's a big plus for the local economy."

The fourth reason -- Trudeau Warbird Enterprises -- which just moved to the airport from DeSoto county.

"It's a restoration, repair and parts operation. It's like a magnet," Zack said.

That's something else I wasn't aware of, but that's a story for another issue. I will let you know, however, that while I was strolling around the facility with owner ?? Trudeau and Zack, I was shown a P-51 Mustang in the early stages of restoration. The most famous fighter of WW II, the plane that escorted our beleagured bombers over Germany, it's worth a bundle of cash ($2 million, to be exact) and is indicative of the respect all those vintage plane plane owners out there have for Trudeau Warbird Enterprises.

The story isn't complete without about one more little tidbit about those planes you saw last month. You don't have to worry about one of them crashing on your house.

"We obviously want to preserve the planes and keep them flying," Zack said. "but part and parcel of that is to keep them flying safely. We're very sensitive to the fact that people thinkthey are old and unsafe.

According to Zack, the planes have no shelf life because they must meet safety standards that are as rigorous as those imposed on our commercial aviation industry. Each one has to have an annual safe operation and maintenance overhaul that, among other things, requires the engine to be disassembled and the wings taken off. Everything affecting the safe operation of the plane is checked out.

As for Zack, he reported that his wife's ploy to get him flying again worked.

"I'm in the process of getting a T-34," he said.

Now that's a boy toy to be envious of.