I spent many a long hour with Kershner while I was a student pilot. My
copy is so ragged looking it's embarrassing. I actually spent an hour
on the phone with him when he called the museum asking to donate copies
of his Private Pilot Manual to the education department. He was really
interested in getting young folks interested in flying. I would have
loved to have flown with him (except I'd probably get sick doing spins!).

The aviation community has lost an important member.

Margy

Jim wrote:
'Spin Doctor' Bill Kershner dies at 77

Pilot, flight instructor, and aviation author William K. Kershner, 77, died
January 8 in Sewanee, Tennessee, after a prolonged battle with cancer.

He soloed an Aeronca Defender from Clarksville, Tennessee's Outlaw Field - a
grass strip at the time - in 1945 at age 16. After four years flying
Corsairs in the Navy, Kershner worked as a corporate pilot, flight-test
pilot, and special assistant to William T. Piper Sr., then president of
Piper Aircraft. With the help of his wife, Betty - who typed his handwritten
manuscripts - Kershner authored and illustrated a series of five highly
regarded flight manuals; his Student Pilot's Flight Manual alone has sold
more than 1 million copies.

Kershner contributed often to AOPA publications, including AOPA Pilot and
AOPA Flight Training. More than 8,000 spins...