Honey, I Bought an Airplane

Stories, Histories and Recollections of 597 Flights in the Midwest

No one else ever took a trip like this. Nearly 600 trips, actually. But who cares, I thought, when first approached to edit the manuscript for this book about flying into every little airport in Indiana, then moving on to those in surrounding states? Pilots? Perhaps. Even so Im a writer, not a pilot. And Bob Hechlinski is a pilot not a writer. Except Bob has an insatiable curiosity about people, places, events, you name it. To him, an airport is more than a name or a spot on a map. Hes a great listener. He has ears and eyes for detail nuggets that many people either overlook or dont connect with other nuggets like dots on a page, to create picture after picture after picture. And Bob has a gift for gab. Storytelling, if you will. So if you believe (as I do) that writing is talking when you cant be there, give this book a listen. Hear things you never knew about John Dillinger, Al Capone, a WWII pilot named OHare back-road encounters on Mackinac Island and not flying under the bridge out-maneuvering storm clouds the Oshkosh air show close-knit neighborhoods with hangar-garages airports in Ohio police in Gary, Indiana the link between Northwestern University and a historic Lake Michigan passenger-ferry tragedy how a teenagers Happy Birthday flight launched a career and more. Much more. Some people read books from page 1; the opening line hooks them. Others check the ending first. (If I like how it ends, Ill like getting there.) With Honey, feel free to start in the middle; pick a page any page. Chances are, you will quickly be drawn in and pulled onward from one mini-tale to the next. And at some point, youll say Geez, lets go back and read the rest! I did. Cmon along for the ride. Bob makes even the shortest hop a fun trip. Richard E. Schingoethe