Footnote to Chapter Two

I was actually able to get in touch with the owner of 934 at the time of the crash. He bought the plane to lease back to a flying school. One of the club members took the plane on an east coast trip in December of 1987 and was on his way home when he pronged it in Davenport. If the pilot had only 23 hours in type, I think it must have almost all been on that one trip. I've got quite a bit more in type, including a fair amount of training and also more instrument hours. I would not fly in the middle of night, middle of winter in stormy weather to an airport I had never flown to or from. It sounds like a case of get-there-itis.

After the crash, the plane was actually purchased by the insurance company, who owned it until 1989, although that is not reflected in the FAA records. Chapter 3 will tell the story of the plane's return to service, including the easter egg that has cost me $40,000 to address.