Pompano - 12-30-2004 at 08:03 AM
Air Cortez....oh, the stories about that line! Converted Beachcraft. Flew into the Serinadad, Loreto, Guaymas, Ontario. etc. Once flew co-pilot
from Mulege-Guaymas-Ontario after pilot opened his thermos and I smelled the whiskey...ah, The good ole days of Adventure!
Oh Yeh
LaTijereta - 1-1-2005 at 09:07 AM
I flew them out of Ontario down to Loreto in the late 70s. I remember the open c-ckpit, drinks, stopping in Guaymas, Calaxico, and on into
Ontario.
man, that's great stuff for sure...
capt. mike - 1-1-2005 at 09:29 AM
Did you guys also ever see Capt. Francisco Munoz fly his line? was a beech 18 too i believe, whistle stops all the way.
Don Johnson and others say he was the best baja pilot ever. Used to horse it off the shortest strips fully loaded like no body's biz.
some of the older Serenidad regulars have told me they saw him come in a lot in the 60s. always dressed to the nines in full regalia. wish i had a
picture.
i think in his 80s now and still living in TJ and BOLA near the strip that bears his name?
Baja flyer Francisco Munoz....
Pompano - 1-1-2005 at 10:39 AM
I never had the pleasure of meeting Senor Munoz, but my old Baja amigo, JW Black, told me a lot of stories about their exploits together with
'UncleEarl' Gardner. JW (Blackjack) was a pilot also..although he told me he quit soon after landing at a California airport and they said he had to
get a license to fly. No fun after that, he said. I have a photo for you showing Munoz, Gardner, and plane.
Air Cortez.....I can still smell the whiskey coming out of that Air Cortez pilot's thermos! (He had the same first name as mine.) I was a learning
pilot then and he just turned the controls over to me and asked me if I could keep it straight and level. Of course he had it trimmed up pretty good
so it was not a big deal for me. The passengers in back were a little 'white' the rest of the trip, though.
I flew a DC-3 originating in Mexico City with quite a few stops..also Loreto and finally landing at the old strip north of Mulege a couple miles west
of the highway. That didn't last long.
Remember Gunnel Air ... I think out of Santa Monica? They flew a few times in/out of the Serinadad, too. I flew them once or twice.
Resort Airlines...screwed us big time. My friends from ND were stranded here because that airline went belly up during their vacation. Gave them an
old station wagon to leave at LAX so they could get home.
Dusty's 'To Places You Shouldn't Oughta Go!' Air Servicio. He used a 180 taildragger with big tundra tires and we went to the boonies many times. I
think he was having 'flashbacks' from 1500hrs+ of Cobra time in Vietnam. He had greasemark sighting X's on the inside windscreen and we 'straffed' a
few beaches, whales, pangas, ranchos, Baja road semis and motorhomes. We once flew a load of lobster back to Mulege from San Jaunico on the Pacific
side. He wanted to see an old rancho way down in a canyon coming over the mountains. Banked a little too hard and the passenger door popped
open...scared the bee-jesus out of me.
Those were some times!
Flying the Baja outback with Dusty ...
Pompano - 1-2-2005 at 04:04 AM
We saw some really remote areas..places where I doubt anyone has been since. Also remote ranchos to revisit old amigos we had met before while
boondocking in 'grasshoppers'.
We are loading the taildragger in this photo for a camping trip to some remote and unnamed Pacific beaches, whale watching, lobster diving, and then
on down to Cabo...a smaller place then.
We would just fly and explore. If it was windy (which was often on the Pacific side) we could take off in less than 6 seconds...a VERY short
run...and exciting when there were cactus or a cliff ahead.
We 'surfed' the plane in the big rollers of the Pacific shores by throttling back and Dusty would put the starboard wingtip under a curl and down the
beach we would go...like I said, he was a different sort of guy. But he saved my bacon more than once. I doubt I would trust any pilot more than him
in a LZ. 2 1000 hr. tours in a Cobra will give you an edge.
He's still flying..nowadays pretty tame stuff for him. Forest fire waterbombers and smoke patrol in the season...and Costa Rica tourists in the
winter.
outstanding history and pics pompano.
capt. mike - 1-2-2005 at 07:42 AM
keep it coming. please.
Old Baja planes.....
Pompano - 1-2-2005 at 12:23 PM
Maybe you will recognize some of these aircraft? Most came into the Serinadad. The Beaver we flew to Alaska.....loud!..radial!..engine! You could
always hear us coming a ways away.
S & B
Pompano - 1-2-2005 at 12:28 PM
How about this homebuilt at the Serinadad? Recognize her? One just like this flew over our Coyote house 2 days ago. Also has a distinctive engine
noise...like a Briggs & Stratton grain auger. A nervous sound when in the air.