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Kitchen Table Kibitzing August 21, 2022 [1]
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Date: 2022-08-21
KTK
Flakey Flights
What would this young woman be dreaming about? The future of air travel? Airmail letters? Exotic vacations? Cloud seeding? Giant airports of the future? Lost luggage?
No. It was “maybe I could walk on the wings of a plane while it was flying.”
A few weeks ago I wrote a diary advising folks to install grab bars in their showers to keep them safe. As I enter the shower, holding on for dear life to keep from falling, I have mused on the practice of wing walking. From Wikipedia:
Wing walking is the act of moving along the wings of an aeroplane (most commonly a biplane) during flight, sometimes transferring between planes. It originated as a daredevil stunt in the aerial barnstorming shows of the 1920s, and became the subject of several Hollywood movies. An early exponent was Ormer Locklear, who was killed performing a dive on film. Charles Lindbergh began his aviation career as a wing walker.
As I suspected, “Eight wing walkers died in a relatively short period during the infancy of wing walking.”
As the Wikipedia article mentions, the stunts became more and more bizarre and dangerous. In 1936, the practice effectively ended when the U.S. government banned wing walking below 1,500 feet (460 m). People had difficulty seeing stunts above that height.
This LINK shows many of the stunts that were accomplished in the early years….worth a look. Srsly.
Now one might think that this practice would be in the past, but you would be wrong. It goes on today, though with government-required safety measures. Before writing this diary I had happened upon this:
*
If you have the desire, it’s possible to do this right now! What are we waiting for?
Wing Walking Cheap….One person, upper wing: $750
One person, full course, upper and lower wing: $985
This is on my anti-bucket list, along with bungee jumping, climbing Everest, para-gliding, boxing. sky-diving, cliff-diving, and driving Highway 80. Unfortunately, I have to do the latter from time to time.
What are your extreme sports or activities that you have done…..or would never do?
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