B-1 pilot flies Young
Eagles in his Bonanza
By Barbara A. Schmitz
 |
|
When David Marten
is not flying the B-1 bomber, he’s giving EAA Young Eagles
rides in his Bonanza. Unfortunately, the U.S. Air Force won’t
let him use this for the flights. Photo by Dave Higdon |
In 1993, when David
Marten was 15, he took a Young Eagles flight in a Beechcraft Staggerwing.
It was his first flight in a small airplane.
"The pilot, an old
Air Force instructor, let me take the controls," he recalled.
"He basically taught me the maneuvers and explained everything so I
was more comfortable. It was not just a ride."
Already interested in
aviation from his father taking him to air shows, Marten admits that
flight hooked him. Today, the B-1 instructor pilot from Ellsworth AFB is
hoping to hook other youngsters as part of the Young Eagles program.
"I tell them I’m a
B-1 pilot and say, ‘If I can do it, so can you,’ " he said.
"They’re usually smiling ear-to-ear by the time we’re
done."
He generally gets a lot
of questions from the kids, such as what it’s like to fly a B-1 and
what kind of grades you need in school. "I tell them if they want
something bad enough, they need to put their mind to it."
He certainly put his mind
to it.
Marten started taking
flying lessons at 16, paying for them by working at Kentucky Fried
Chicken. He joined the Civil Air Patrol, and then went on to graduate
from the Air Force Academy.
On Friday, he and two
other pilots gave about 25 children Young Eagles rides. Altogether,
Marten has given more than 80 Young Eagles flights.
"It was really
cool," said Alyssa Martin, 11, of Bridgeport, Michigan. Andrea
Riskey, 10, of Oshkosh, agreed. "We even got to fly over our
house."
Quinton Riskey, 8, said
the flight was fun, but he was surprised how many other planes they saw.
It made him sure he wants to be a pilot, he said, but in an aerobatic
plane.
Martin, who has 1,600
total hours and 1,100 in the B-1, had first hoped to fly the bomber to
Oshkosh. "When they asked who wanted to go to Oshkosh, all of us
did," he said. "But a lieutenant colonel over-ranked me."
So instantaneously Marten
decided to fly his 1956 Beechcraft Bonanza instead. Marten and his wife,
Theresa, flew in Saturday as part of the Bonanza formation.
His day job is flying the
B-1. "I really love fast low-level flying," he said. But he
also likes the change of pace of flying the Bonanza.
Still, sometimes it is
hard to change gears. "Especially after I haven’t flown the
Bonanza for a while, it seems funny to sit low and close to the ground
and to have so few buttons in front of me."
Marten not only flies
youth, but is also the Chapter 39 EAA Young Eagles coordinator, while
Theresa is the ground coordinator.
Marten says EAA chapters
can make a big difference in getting youth interested in aviation.
"The Young Eagles flight got me interested, but the EAA chapter
seeing my interest really followed up and invited me to their meetings.
They even hooked me up for flight classes."
