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The first airplane I owned after becoming a private pilot, Tri-Pacer Four Three Delta, was a fabric covered four-place airplane that was manufactured in 1958 and powered by a 160 horsepower Lycoming O-320-B engine. It cruised at about 120 miles per hour and carried 643 pounds in addition to 36 gallons of fuel. Over a period of 20 years, we spent over 1600 fun filled hours in the air and had some great adventures.
Over the years I would discover nuggets that would reveal the rich history of Tri-Pacers.
Owning my first airplane - or more correctly - being owned by my first airplane, was a usually pleasant but always interesting learning experience.
Interesting sidelight: Four Three Delta spent it's early years at a flight school near Chicago. The Tri-Pacer at left, one of its contemporaries from the same school, was chartered by a bank robber for a getaway. The pilot was informed of the plot and faked fuel exhaustion, landing in a field where police were waiting. |
-- Richard Bach -- |
Book containing these adventures and much more! |
Some of the most memorable flights:
Flying into Oshkosh 1997.An evening flight over Chesapeake Bay from Atlantic City to Washington, D.C.
Numerous beautiful flights across the plains of the Midwest.
Flights to the Gulf of Mexico, New Orleans and Dauphin Island.
Numerous flights around the state of New Mexico with its mountains and deserts.
A trip down the east coast of Mexico, to Tampico, Puebla, Acapulco and up the west coast to Guaymas and back home to Albuquerque.
N8943D's home bases: Albuquerque, NM - St Joseph, MO
Read about more flight adventures!
-- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. |
Tri-Pacer Sites:
You haven't seen a tree until you've seen its shadow from the sky. -- Amelia Earhart (a fellow Kansan) |