2008 Bluebonnet Picnic Highlights
WWII Veteran and L-bird pilot visits Cannon Field
Article by Alamo Liaison Squadron member Ryan Short
The Alamo Liaison Squadron was formed to preserving the history of the L-birds and the pilots who flew them in the service of our country during WWII. As the years pass by, so do the opportunities to physically honor the L-bird pilots who are still with us. At this year's event the Alamo Liaison Squadron had the unique opportunity of hosting one of the few remaining pilots who served our country over the hostile skies of Okinawa during the fighting between American and Japanese forces at our annual Bluebonnet Picnic. After a couple of months of searching, the Squadron's small veterans search task force was increasingly frustrated as efforts to bring in some of the few remaining L-bird pilots were unsuccessful. In God's Providence, and thanks to the kindness of Sentinel Club president James Gray, a friend of an L-bird pilot from the Houston area contacted us a few weeks before the event and expressed interest in a veteran L-5 pilot attending Grasshopper Gathering. Naturally, we were equally interested in his attendance and arrangements were made.
A number of the Alamo Liaison Squadron members arrived early in the morning and all pitched in to prepare the food, set up the tables and chairs, get the aircraft ready, and take care of all the details necessary to run a decent fly-in. Despite some low clouds early on we had a really good turnout of visiting aircraft. The L-bird theater we'd hoped to put on wasn't as successful as we would've liked – mostly due to some electrical issues which we will be resolving in the near future. The good thing is that the few who stayed to watch the film really enjoyed it.
The L-bird pilot, Mr. L. D. Todd of Houston, TX, and his family showed up and we talked to them about his experiences. Shortly afterwards I took him over to the L-5 and asked if we could take some pictures. Once we were at the plane, I asked if he'd like to go for a ride. Boy did he like that idea. The last time he'd been in an L-5 was when he left Okinawa. It was a bit harder for him to get in, and we had to have him ride in the back seat, instead of the front seat he was used to. The flight went well, I let him fly the plane around for a few minutes (which felt altogether too short...) and he seemed to enjoy the opportunity. Finally, I knew I had to get back to the field for the L-bird Demo briefing, so we came back to the field and landed. The joy Mr. Todd expressed after the flight was worth all of the work we'd done putting together the event. It was such a blast. Various people continued to talk with them afterwards and learned many neat things.
As usual we featured a barbeque and had some good food available for folks. During this time we talked about the history of the L-birds and of the Alamo Liaison Squadron, and also paid tribute to various groups and people that have helped us in the past year.
Right after lunch Matt V. and I launched for the L-bird demo. Basically, I take off in the observation aircraft (Usually the L-2) and do a pass, then spiral upwards and “loiter” over the “battlefield” while a narrator talks about the observation role. Then, Matt comes in and does a low pass, checking the field for suitability, then comes in and lands the L-5 and taxis back. Then a ground crew loads a stretcher case into the rear fuselage – like they would have been loaded into L-5s that were acting as the early medevac planes for the Army. Mr. Todd told us that on Okinawa, their L-5s could get a wounded soldier back to the hospital in 15 minutes – while it would take 3 hours by ground transportation due to mud and congestion on the roads.
The L-bird demo was followed up by a four-ship formation and a missing man pass by members of the ALS. This year's tribute was in memory of beloved ALS member Henry Whitemore who passed away a few months back.
A local K-9 unit then demonstrated their dogs, and talked about their work supporting police operations, as well as the US Army in Iraq.
The last flying part of the day was the flour bombing and spot landing contests. The field was a bit weak this year, with only 4 pilots participating, but we all had fun and the crowd enjoyed it, too. Some guy flying the L-5 won both...
. The flour bombing is something of a trick to win, because we normally take bombardiers who are allowed to drop the bomb in the target zone, so between the pilot, and the bombardier, you can get some interesting results. The closest bomb was a whopping 42 ft from the target (I think). On the other hand the spot landing contest is fun in a taildragger, and 21 ft was the best 3-point distance (no bounces or wheel landings allowed) for the day. I particularly enjoyed taking a few young friends of mine up for the contest.
We finished up the day with a raffle drawing and some folks won some neat prizes.
All in all we had a great picnic and fly-in, and the Squadron did well for the event also. This is our main fund raiser of the year, and every little bit helps to keep the planes flying.
The weather was a bit hot and we hope to move the event back to April next year. Come on out!
Pictures to follow!
Ryan
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