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Flying into College Park Airport, Nov '06
Flying into College Park Airport, Nov '06
(Click on photo for larger version, or select "medium" or "large"
links below each image).
College Park Airport is the oldest continuously operated airport
in the world, founded in 1909 for the Wright Brother's instruction
of the first military aviators.
Since the flight restrictions that followed in the wake of 9/11,
traffic at the airport has dropped off precipitously. The procedures
for getting in and out are a bit complicated, and only pilots who
have passed a "vetting" process are allowed in. This process involves
finger-printing and a background check, but it mostly involves a bunch
of paper-work and running around, so most sensible pilots don't bother.
Having gone through the trouble of sitting on the Group W bench,
and finally being assigned an FRZ PIN, we flew into College Park
to see if I could do it without being shot down, to get a scenic
view of my old school, U of MD College Park, and to get some lunch
at the restaurant on the field, a 94th Aerosquadron.
Our flight from Gaithersburg was short, probably about 10 minutes.
We actually had to drive right past College Park to get to the
airport in Gaithersburg, in order to fly to College Park.
Into the FRZ...
But can we get back out without being shot down?
After a fine lunch, we headed back home.
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Harry Mantakos /
harry@meretrix.com
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