It was a normal Friday afternoon of work on June 6, when National Bear Festival Director Tom Harrison texted, wondering if somebody from The Beacon would like to join the US Army’s Black Knights for their flight Saturday.
Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, but also not wanting to exclude our best photographer, I offered the oppor- tunity to Arthur Howell.
He declined — strenuously — saying he’s more than happy to keep his feet on the ground.
His generosity cleared the way for me to accept Tom’s invitation.
It was downright hot Saturday and I was a little more than perplexed that I was told to bring a jacket. However, it became clear when, during our preflight briefing team member Jonathan explained that the temperature drops about three degrees for every 1,000 feet you ascend into the atmosphere.
He asked if anybody was experiencing sinus congestion or had heart problems (no to both),
or if the women were pregnant (absolutely not), but failed to mention that we would be sitting in the rear of the plane, beside an open door...
