Stolen "Champ" wings located...from 23,000 feet!!

A nice ending to the story:


Folks:

MIRACLES HAPPEN!!!!



In followup to the search for the missing Aeronca wings which began on
Wednesday before Thanksgiving (see attached story), here's the rest of
the story ..... Be sure to read the "Special Thanks" section at the end
for the details which made this whole event so miraculous!



On Friday night (12/5/03), I received a phone call from Brent
Higginbotham that he had spotted what he thought could be a pair of
wings on the ground 2 1/2 miles north of Minco and 1 mile west of
Highway 81 FROM 23,000 feet with his aerial photography work!



Saturday I overflew that general area, and was unsuccessful in locating
the wings. I decided to fly back to Chickasha (18 miles south where the
rest of the airplane is hangered), when my friend Cory, spotting from
the right side of the airplane, yelled "There they are!" They were in
the back yard of a house in downtown Minco, Oklahoma. We landed and
decided to consult the situation with the Minco police department
(already aware of the search), which confirmed that these were the
missing wings. After knocking on the door to the owner of the backyard,
no response was obtained and so they checked next door neighbor (family
members of homeowner), who authorized police & us to retrieve them, and
even offered the use of their big trailer to transport the wings back to
the airport. Two trailering trips later the wings are safe & secure
back at the Chickasha Airport (home of the Champ)!



SPECIAL THANKS TO:

* Pilot Frank Bice, who amazingly had taken photos of my Aeronca
Champ airplane safely parked on the side of the highway just after the
emergency landing, and initiated an incredible spreading the of the
Wing Search by email and Internet to hundreds of airports & pilots in
this region.
* Editor & Publisher Ralph McCormick of the Fly-Low aviation
magazine, for his remarkable article in such short time, published on
the website prior to the regular printing date. (See attached article)
* Minco, Oklahoma Police Department for their invaluable assistance
in the recovery of the wings in a safe, courteous, legal and non-violent
manner.
* Brent Higginbotham, aerial photography in Oklahoma City, who
reviewed his film of that general area and spotted what turned out to be
the missing wings - and his diligence in tracking me down late at night
to let me know of this finding, inspite of professional obligations at
4AM the following morning.
* My best friend, Cory, whose expertise from youthful experience as
a airplane spotter for the Wildlife Department enabled him to pick out
the two yellow wings amongst a sea of yellow farm equipment from the air.

Final note - In this day & age of skepticism and stories of heartache,
this entire event and all those involved has once again shown the
goodness of people everywhere, especially in Oklahoma. What a wonderful
holiday gift!

Pablo