| WINGS ‘N THINGS by Judie Betz Ocala Star-Banner April 9, 2003 |
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| CHIROPRACTIC PILOT Pete Fambrough, who lives on his own private airstrip in Candler, has been both a chiropractor and a pilot for a long time. He is also the current local chapter president of the statewide organization, the Florida Aero Club, with which he’s been affiliated for quite a few years as well. Fambrough opened his chiropractic practice in Ocala in January of 1959, and just retired in January of this year. Appropriately enough his airport is named Back Acres. He’s just now phasing himself into the retirement mode to allow himself more time to play. That means on the golf course or flying one of his airplanes. He knew he wanted to be a pilot from the time he was five years old. “I can remember lying on my back at that age, that would have been 1939, and watching planes fly overhead,” he said. “They had stars on the wings and red and white tails. Although I didn’t realize it at the time, they were B-17’s. I said then that someday I’d be a pilot and fly airplanes with stars on the wings and a red and white tail. I’ve owned some 20-plus airplanes, including three Stearmans; the one I have now, although it has one engine instead of four like the B-17s, has stars on the wings and a red and white tail!” Born in Punta Gorda and raised there and in the Miami area, Fambrough had his first airplane ride in Punta Gorda (…“but that’s another story”). He moved to Ocala in 1949. “Eastern Airlines came to Ocala and started service in 1950. I remember them giving DC-3 rides. They took loads of passengers around Silver Springs, then brought them back to the airport. That’s how I had my second ride.” He learned that there was a vocational flight training program offered as part of the local high school curriculum, so he signed up. That was 51 years ago. “ It cost $2.50 an hour for dual. And that was wet!” He managed to gather together $25 and paid for 10 hours. “I soloed in four hours in a J-3, then spent the rest of my time having fun flying all around.” Then came college and military service, and a short interruption from flying. “I couldn’t afford to fly…I still can’t,” he quipped. But after he started his chiropractic practice he went back out to the Ocala Airport. “Rates had now gone all the way up to $8 an hour. In the next five years or so I got my instrument, commercial, multi-engine, seaplane, and glider ratings. I even did everything but take the test for the CFI. In fact I took off to go take the test for CFI and reconsidered. I realized I didn’t really want to do that. The same thing happened with my balloon rating. I just couldn’t justify it. Just like I couldn’t justify owning five airplanes at one time.” He’s cut his airplane fleet back to two at the moment, an aerobatic Christen Eagle and a classic open-cockpit Stearman. Over time he’s owned 22 other planes…a Cub, a Pitts, two Mooneys, and an Ercoupe are some of the ones that came to mind most readily. “I took two great trips around the country by Ercoupe,” he said. “They were fun. On the first we flew to Fond du Lac on our way to Oshkosh. We found out the field was full so we got to Oshkosh by pickup truck. Then we flew west to the Pacific. The next trip we flew over to New Smyrna, then up the Atlantic coast, over to the Susquehanna to Lock Haven. Then up to Niagara Falls, around the Great Lakes, on to Oshkosh, then down the Mississippi to New Orleans and back home. That was great, too!” “I can remember going to the Florida Aero Club dinner meetings years ago at a steakhouse up on Silver Springs Boulevard. I got re-activated again about five years ago. I enjoy all the people.” When asked about stepping in to the role of president, he said “It’s easy when you have lots of good help.” Fambrough has some interesting ideas in mind for club activities. For instance he’d like to make a trip to Kitty Hawk this year to celebrate the anniversary of the 100 years of flight. He’d like to fly the Stearman up. He’d also like to take the group to see some of the aviation museums on the East Coast. “I talked to the club about a bus trip that would take about a week. We’d go to Savannah to tour the Eighth Air Force Museum, then continue up to Washington, DC to spend a couple of days at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, then come back by way of Macon to stop at the Warner-Robbins Museum.” If you’re interested in learning more about the Florida Aero Club or would like to participate in some of Fambrough’s suggested trips, give him a call at 687-2300. |
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