1928: In aviation news, it was the year Amelia Earhart flew her plane east across the Atlantic Ocean successfully, the first female having done so. In “less real” aviation, Mickey and Minnie debuted in the silent cartoon short Plane Crazy. It was also the year sliced bread first appeared, leading many Americans to say it was the best thing since bagged bread.
And what’s better than sliced bread? Getting to experience the premier passenger transport of 1928, the Ford Tri-Motor! This stable and immaculate bird is 89 years-young, and is ready to take you on a slow ride through history this week at Lanier Flight Center! Thanks to our friends at EAA 611, we can take a seat in the most popular airliner of the late 1920s and early 1930s. From Thursday, October 26 through Sunday, October 29, tickets are available for your opportunity to fly the Ford Tri-Motor at our KGVL location!
The Ford Tri-Motor aircraft was first built by the Ford Motor Company in the late 1920s. EAA’s Ford Tri-Motor 5-AT-B, affectionately dubbed the “Tin Goose” (and later “the smooth-skin Ford”), was constructed in 1928 and has an intriguing history, with roles ranging from service in the Transcontinental Air Transport (TAT) to Transcontinental and Western Air (TWA), and from Grand Canyon Airlines to Boulder Dam Tours, and much more!
Tickets purchased in advance are $70 for adults; walk up tickets are $75 and $50 for children 17 years-old and under. Book your spot on the historic “Tin Goose” through a secure flight-reservation system at www.flytheford.org, EAA’s Tri-Motor tour website. Rides will begin on Thursday, October 26 from 2:00 to 5:00pm. Rides on Friday, October 27, Saturday, October 28, and Sunday, October 29 will be from 9:00am until 5:00pm.
From the EAA: “Revenues from the Ford Tri-Motor tour help cover maintenance and operations costs for the aircraft and aid our ambition to keep the ‘Tin Goose’ flying for many years to come.”
We look forward to sharing this memorable event with you and wish to thank our friends in EAA Chapter 611 for making this possible. For more information on our EAA, please go here: www.611.eaachapter.org/.
