Free Republic

LANCASTER - The five latest additions to Lancaster's Aerospace Walk of Honor will bring to 70 the number of aviation pioneers honored since the walk's inception in 1990. The experience of this year's honorees - James D. Eastham, Robert C. Little, Bruce Peterson, the late Russell M. "Rusty" Roth and Rogers Smith - all flew in the skies above the Antelope Valley during their careers in a series of firsts. Eastham tested and developed the world's first three Mach 3-plus aircrafts, the A-12, YF-12A and SR-71 Blackbird and Little took the F-101A Voodoo supersonic on its very first flight at...

LANCASTER - He has flown 240 different kinds of aircraft, logging 16,700 hours of flight time while setting records and performing test piloting feats that are the "right stuff" of aviation history. Contrary to the popular image of high-flying test pilots, however, the one thing that everyone who has met Fitzhugh "Fitz" Fulton notes is his courtly "Southern gentleman" manner. Despite his many noteworthy accomplishments and awards, Fulton remains "so humble," said Paula Smith, executive director of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots. "He always seems surprised when someone honors him." Fulton's already long list of awards was lengthened recently...