event Flying the wild East Coast BY DAVE HIRSCHMAN Maine The T he AOPA 2012 Sweepstakes “Tougher Than a Tornado” Husky can seem as out of place at a big airport as a monster truck on the streets of Manhattan. The Husky was designed and built in Wyoming for flying throughout the rugged and expansive West—so what happens if its eventual winner is an East Coast city slicker? Could an airplane optimized for rough, high-altitude airports be useful in other regions where elevations are low, distances are short, and paved airports are plentiful? An autumn trip to rural Maine in the Tornado Husky showed the answer is, unequivocally, yes. PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRIS ROSE Plus— View the video. AOPA PILOT • 60 • DECEMBER 2011