Some days everything seems to fall into place even as it annoyingly runs awry.
This was one of those days for me.
Getting out in the sunshine for some exploration with my Air Camp friend was something we were both looking forward to but couldn’t seem to nail down where to meet.
Driving towards her area of the world, she suggested one location, which I imagined as someplace completely different.
After the second miscalculation, she called to suggest we scrap our original thoughts and head to the prairie – Huffman Prairie.
Great idea – it’s a beautiful day why not enjoy the sunshine walking amongst the flags and the light breeze on hallowed ground?
I could see the flags surrounding the prairie as I made a turn onto the lightly traveled road and was surprised to see another car behind me making the same turns.
Emerging from the trees lining the road by the interurban station, my jaw dropped to see the Wright Flyer taking off from the runway at Wright Patterson Air Force Base just the other side of the fence from Huffman Prairie.
The car following me stopped close to the fence in a parking area. I continued down to the catapult and hangar reproductions where another car was sitting.
The car’s driver was outside of the car and focusing her phone on the Wright Flyer flying around the flags at Huffman prairie.
It was something I had imagined seeing from reading in history books and running the area before but never thought I’d see in real life.
I parked and pulled my phone out as I exited the car to record the sight.
The girl who was there said there was a notification online that this would be happening, but it was earlier than expected.
We were both ecstatic and giggling from excitement. Maybe even jumping up and down – I don’t remember but it could have happened.
As the Wright Flyer finished its revolution, my Air Camp friend called saying she was nearby. I had her on speaker phone as I was taking pictures and video of the sight encouraging her to keep coming and she wouldn’t believe what was happening.
Other cars were arriving, maybe three or four more, people almost all exiting their cars as I did, filming the recreation.
As my friend arrived, the look of surprise and excitement on her face echoed what I was still feeling.
The Wright Flyer flying the course as it had over a century before is undoubtedly history in the modern day.
She took some video and pictures as well as the flyer did a couple more revolutions of the flags around the prairie eventually landing again on the runway of Wright Patterson adjacent.
After we put away our phones, we looked around at the flags marking the flight of the Wright Flyer talking about walking the route before deciding another day would be better as the firing range next door looked occupied, and the road between the range and flying field was barricaded with signs.
Turning our attention to the other side of the field, we decided to take the nature trail through high prairie grass – an area neither had explored before.
Her recollections of bringing others to the flying field included tears from more than one person. Some were teachers who used aviation as a vehicle to inspire, others were kids learning about aviation in its cradle.
Relaying the goosebumps I felt upon my first experience at the flying field, my friend echoed the sentiment. Seeing what was read about and imagined from books is a dream come true.
We wandered along the tree-lined road adjacent to the prairie where Simms Station on the interurban line had once stood.
Hearing the unique sound of the Wright Flyer again, we turned around and walked back towards the flying field.
We did not see the flyer fly again that day but could hear it through the trees on the warm October afternoon.
This must have been what the passengers on the interurban line would have heard all those days ago.
If I had planned to be at the flying field, something certainly would have changed my plans. The best surprises almost always lead to a most surprising destination.
Doing some research afterward, I found the flight was likely a commemoration of the longest flight at the flying field; a time of 39 minutes on October 5, 1905.
As the Wright Flyer replica is based at Wright Brothers (MGY) while it is a close airport by usual standards, it is more taxing mentally and physically to fly than a modern airplane.
The airplane is indeed stepping back in time as there have been incidents in the past, even injuries to the pilot.
This is yet another instance of the day being better than what was planned.
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