AOPA Pilot Magazine - September 2011 - 91

sponder. I am totally won over by the radio’s clarity. The marshy Georgia coast slides by and the Husky’s tremendous downward visibility provides a wondrous view. A ground speed of 105 knots makes the 800-mile trip an all-day affair. But hand-flying the airplane (there is no autopilot) is so enjoyable, and the Husky is so stable, that it is a refreshing and relaxing task. The Husky’s stick is absolutely huge and feels like a baseball bat. Aviat, like Russian aircraft designers, believes in mechanical advantage. I find myself choking down on the stick during cruise by gripping it on the neck. After three hours of flying I skim over the top of Hilton Head’s airspace and touch down at Beaufort County Airport on the muggy South Carolina coast. There’s a seven-knot crosswind, but the Husky’s authoritative rudder keeps the airplane tracking the centerline. Taxiing to the self-service fuel pump, the airplane is greeted by a small army of admirers. They are impressed by the Husky and fixate on its tires. “Did they come from Krispy Kreme or Dunkin’?” someone asks. “Cream-filled or jelly?” Almost home As the afternoon temperature rises, I climb higher looking for cool air and find it at 7,500 feet. I continue to push the engine fairly hard at full throttle and 2,500 rpm, where the three-blade MT prop is silky smooth. The XM Weather, and my own eyes, show intense but scattered thunderstorms firing across North Carolina and southern Virginia. Thankfully, the air between the towering cumulus buildups remains relatively smooth. My next fuel stop is in Danville, Virginia, and the GPS shows I’ll get there at 6:50 p.m., and the built-in AOPA database shows that the FBO closes at 7. I call 30 miles out and let the person on the unicom frequency know that a thirsty Husky is on the way, so please stick around. After refueling, there is only one more area of heavy rain showers between Danville and my destination, and it’s closing in on Danville as I taxi for departure. Raindrops begin pelting the windshield as I climb away from the airport, and the rain mercifully lowers the outside temperature and washes away some of the grime from the airplane’s long, forced stay in Florida.

It’s a Thursday night, and the Potomac Approach frequency seems unusually quiet. A particularly agreeable controller allows me to climb into Washington, D.C.’s, Class B airspace and take a direct line to my destination. A good omen The wind is almost calm when I approach Frederick Municipal Airport, and the softly illuminated MetLife blimp tethered to a mast in the airport’s grassy infield serves as a giant wind sock. I turn on all the Tornado Husky’s powerful LED lights, including the dual landing and wig-wag recognition lights, and a pilot taxiing for departure laughingly says on the CTAF that the bright illumination of the slowly approaching aircraft reminds him of the climactic alien spaceship scene in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Nine hours of flying (including the acceptance flight) and the Tornado Husky’s spongy tires are finally chocked on the AOPA ramp. The long flight has revealed a few minor squawks: The left wing is heavy, the rudder trim tab needs adjustment, and it’s time for an oil change. But the airplane itself is the picture of youthful vigor and seems enlivened by the exercise. Soon, we’ll make much more ambitious trips, including a return to Afton, Wyoming, where Huskies are born, for cosmetic repairs, matching paint, and rigging adjustments. Then, it’s on to Montana where members of the RAF are repairing and upgrading remote, backcountry airstrips in the towering Rocky Mountains that are particularly well suited for this specialized aircraft. I’m savoring a successful end to my first day with the Tornado Husky when fireworks appear overhead. Our town’s minor league baseball team, the Frederick Keys, apparently has something to celebrate at the nearby stadium. The colorful pyrotechnic display is a good omen, a sign of many future adventures, excitement, and novel experiences in store for the future winner of this magical airplane. Email the author at dave.hirschman@ aopa.org. For a chance to win this rugged, versatile, and highly capable airplane, simply renew your AOPA membership any time before August 31, 2012. And for extra chances, sign up for automatic annual renewal.

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AOPA PILOT • 91 • SEPTEMBER 2011

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AOPA Pilot Magazine - September 2011

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