Carla, I flew for many years in many planes, antiques,ultralights even powered parachutes. I have 2 runways & a huge hanger, a cabin & pond for friends who fly in. here on the farm & hold many ratings & could be a corporate pilot as I have the hours & they don't want anyone that took the vaccine & all the airline & military pilots did. But my body is shot.
What ultralight did your friend make or his name if you don't mind? Ultralight started south of here at Warren Dunes state park where glider riders would jump off the dune hills on Lake Michigan & ride the thermals sometimes for hours. I knew the record holder Braddock who stayed aloft for close to nine hours. They started putting small engines from chainsaws & the like but when prop tips go supersonic the explode. CGS (Chuck's Glider Supply from Ohio came up with a belt drive reduction allowing larger props & ultralights were born. Another friend Frank & his dad had 2 of the early Quicksilver U/Ls. Quicksilver outsold all the real plane makers put together one or maybe more years. The 1st powered airplane flight happened at Silver Beach but it was uncontrolled so it didn't count. Dick, Frank & I flew both GA planes & Ultralights, Here's Franks youtube .
I'm thinking maybe heart attack as no SOS call, it has a transponder & an ELT. It's a non towered airport but would have shown up on SBN, AZO or EKM radar but I don't know if they keep records but they say he headed north east which is here where the farm is. Dick built it 25 years ago & was an ultralight instructor for many years flying Phantoms which are aerobatic @ 9+ & 6- Gs. I started out skydiving then got into flying prewars you had to hand prop. Dicks wife was always with him & did needlepoint or some kind of sewing while he flew. I really feel bad for her. We had a case where 2 guy's from Indiana filed a flight plan to Mackinac Island go close never landed & never closed the flight plan, headed back to Indiana, ran out of fuel but the pilot had a good spot until the passenger turned the yoke all the way right which took off a wing & cartwheeled into a swamp that was so thick you wouldn't walk thru it. Broke the pilots legs, the passenger went for help but the pilot didn't know he died on the other side of the plane. The civil air patrol went to the bridge where they filed the flight plan to. The pilot was there 5 days chewing on his shoes & recycling his urine when a plane spotted them. The rescuers had to chain saw their way in & one of them put a hand on the plane & the ELT went off. I didn't have transponders in the antiques but always had ELTs & where I could reach the & the ones I could plug my headset into. The Bonanza I bought after I broke my back & recovered all I was going to had everything including Chuck Yeagers Loran from Glorius Glennis he set the record in. Still was useless but then I couldn't throw it away. Haven't heard any planes in over an hour so I'll get on the phone. Thanks All!
