Sometime in the early 70’s my first major dive trip was to Cayman Brac.
Flew out of Tampa in. DC-3.
It was a party atmosphere on board.
Somewhere over the Everglades we hit some rough air. Tossed a few people around and drinks on the ceiling.
Got real quiet and somber for a few minutes.
Then someone started to giggle. Laughing ensued and the party was on again.
Landed in Miami to refuel and pick up a few extra passengers.
While waiting aboard we noticed the pilot out on the wing doing something with the port engine.
A few minutes later another man in dress clothes joined him. They took off a cover and wacked something with a mallet.
Pilot climbed back aboard and started the engine.
Belched black smoke for a bit and settled down.
Trip to Cayman Brac was otherwise uneventful.
Dive experience was hard to top for decades!
Later found out the other man was the President of Cayman Air.
Later, when we continued up the road, I saw these in a big grass field:
I had to pull over and get closer to get a closer look. They seemed to be in tip top shape.
Just superb. They even retrofit these with turboprop engines!
I love those planes. They say the airframes are so rugged that with appropriate maintenance and care, there is no limit to how long they can keep flying.
They fly well but when one of those P&W 1830’s laydown on you with load on board, you will have your hands full.
They fly well but when one of those P&W 1830’s laydown on you with load on board, you will have your hands full.