AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2021 - 55

soon as I arrived, Fred and Bob removed
my wheels and set me up with brand new
straight floats. Wow! If my brothers at the
Lock Haven factory could see me! I felt so
tall. Now the lake was my runway. For the
next 30 years, I flew with floats during the
summer, and as soon as the lake froze, the
Mohrs switched my shoes for skis to enjoy
the ice and snow.
In summer, tourists flooded the town,
and I flew them to isolated areas. Time
flew fast, and in 1952 something special
happened. For the first time since my
arrival to Crane Lake, there was a new
Mohr in the family, John.
John was born to fly. From an early
age, he would go up with me, his dad Bob,
and Grandpa Fred. Soon, he was grabbing
the stick and making me do turns around
the lake. He didn't know, but I would give
him a little help to stay coordinated as he
couldn't reach the rudder pedals yet.
When he was not flying with me, he
flew a one-sixth scale version of myself.
I don't know how he did it, but he built a
perfect replica of me, and he could make
it fly and control it with his mind! He was
some kind of flying wizard.
The day finally arrived. John was just
You know him as a silverhaired
aviation legend, but I
remember John as a skinny
14-year-old kid and taking
him on his first solo during a
summer day on the lake. His
dad said go and pushed him
off the dock, and John never
looked back. Now he's wiping
bugs off my windshield for
his grandkids-Haakyn (Haak
for short), an exuberant kid
(and cancer survivor) who,
apparently, hasn't got the
memo about home-state
stoicism yet.
14 years old. I was so proud that he finally
took me up by himself, and while I was
using my big summer shoes, those floats.
As the business grew, the Mohrs
decided a bigger airplane was necessary.
And just like that, one day I was not alone
at the flying service anymore. During the
summer of 1955, a shiny new Cessna 180
arrived at the marina. While the 180 was
good at his primary mission of handling
the big and heavy loads, my ability to land
in tighter and smaller places sometimes
gave me an advantage. Bob would use the
180 to take hunters to their remote cabins,
and then during the following days, I
would drop smaller loads of supplies and
gas. I would also perform the occasional
flight for a tourist, and no other airplane
could beat me doing that.
The 1970s arrived fast and with it
some changes in the usual family routine.
John went south to the big city to study.
He only stayed for a few months and left
to start work for a charter service out of
International Falls. There was not enough
business at the lake for all of us, and John
also needed to get some experience in airplanes
with more than one engine for his
future career. At least he visited often.
During those visits, John would share
with Bob all about the new airplanes
he was flying. And I think it was in 1975
when he bought an old cropduster with
two wings called Stearman.
Soon he was barnstorming, flying to
small towns, landing on the fields, and taking
passengers up in exchange for some
money. During those rides, he would perform
some aerobatics for the enjoyment
of his passengers. He became so good that
other people started to pay money to him to
come to their towns and perform airshows.
I was so proud of all his accomplishments.
While John was away, I used the extra
time to teach other Mohr family members
how to fly. John's younger brother Jimmy
would be the second family member to solo
with me. Jimmy and I would fly together
for pleasure for many years.
In 1973, after almost 30 years flying, it
was time for a well-deserved restoration.
Every seven years, Bob would replace my
tired cotton fabric, but this time was different.
John heard about a new product
called " Ceconite " and insisted Bob test it.
I was going to look brand new and shiny
again like the day I left the Piper factory.
Bob, his wife, Dorothy, and John spent the
whole winter working on me. Tenderly they
AOPA PILOT / August 2021
55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2021
