My son was taking his inaugural flight today, thanks to a "Chuck Yeager - Young
Eagle" program at Gillespie Field (El Cajon, CA). He was standing on the wing
of a sparkling red Grumman Yankee, getting his preflight brief from the owner
while various civil and antique a/c came and went on the active, a hundred
yards away. I saw a French thing sitting on the numbers, ready to go but
taking its time. Looked like a Beaver that had been rear-ended by a Potez...
Single engine, shoulder wing, tail of a ... well.. a Potez or Leo - some kind
of twin tail that sure looked out of place on the little 4-6 seater. At long
last, the thing started making the appropriate amount of racket and took off
down the runway. Lex was looking at his pilot - I was looking across the
cockpit at him, toward the runway. My eyes followed the a/c; thinking, that
sure is a slow takeoff.. I don't think the tail ever came up. Answered a
question of Lex's and glanced back - gear is collapsing and its ground looping
to the right, as if he aborted the T/O and tried to turn off with too much
speed. Fire truck rolled quickly to the scene, luckily no meat wagon was
called.

After a short wait, the field announced everything was good and Lex and his
pilot took off, past the forlorn, wing-down kite. 15 minutes later, they
landed (he loved it) and taxied past the French-marked a/c, coming back with a
smile. My wife should stop beating me shortly ("YOU SENT HIM UP AFTER THE
PLANE IN FRONT OF HIM_CRASHED_?"). I tried to make her understand that
mathematically, the chancesOWW Owww OWWW

ahem. Anyway - two questions: everyone ok? and what the heck was it?

v/r
Gordon
====(A+C====
USN SAR Aircrew

"Got anything on your radar, SENSO?"
"Nothing but my forehead, sir."