dragonsblog

I may have been premature in my exhuberance for late winter warming in the previous post. I have been "back out of the saddle" ever since. The cold weather continues, as snow falls outside my window much the way it did in December and January. I don't think my plans for a weekend ride are going to work out. In reality we are really only about mid-way between the warm weather of last fall and the warm weather of spring here along Lake Michigan, because the cool weather often lasts until June.

When I was walking through Midway Airport on my way to Florida in February I saw an addition I had never noticed before. My gate was in the newest wing of the terminal, so I don't think I had ever been down there. As you may know, the airport is named after the Battle of Midway during World War II, and is dedicated to the heroic efforts of the U.S. Armed Forces before and during that pivotal battle in the Pacific Theater. I had seen other memorial displays in the airport, including a Wildcat aircraft that was raised out of Lake Michigan and restored, but had never seen this SBD Dauntless hanging from the ceiling.

The Dauntless was a favorite of mine because I built a model of it as a kid and enjoyed playing with it. The model had the functioning flaps and bomb release swing-arm of the dive bomber, as well as retractable gear and a movable gunner in the rear seat position. It was a pleasure for me to see this full-sized model restored to such fine condition, commemorating what was perhaps the type's finest hour.

There was a display area commemorating the code breakers, defenders of Midway Island, leaders of the forces, etc, and this plaque explaining Chicago's connection to the Navy and naval aviators of WWII. As I recall, most naval aviators were trained in Chicago and on makeshift aircraft carriers in Lake Michigan.

I also saw an excellent example of the Dauntless in the San Diego Aerospace Museum back in 2003. Of course seeing any of these old birds makes me start thinking about warm summer days in Oshkosh, and hearing the thundering masses of radials and Merlins flying overhead. I can hardly wait!