FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
Very Cool! It goes to show you what a small world we live in. And - I thank you for your service!
Sorry to hear about this Hunter crash - I think I know about that one.
Operation of jet warbirds in the civilian world is a risky business (as my family and I found out the hard way). I'm an A&P by trade and got to work around some really neat stuff. As I was really getting into the jet warbird business as a part time gig, I started dating Chamberlain's daughter and through him I met Gilliss. For several years we had a blast and although we made every attempt to be safety conscious on the ground and in the air, it was a matter of time until fate caught up with us. There are so many variables and distractions when operating jet warbirds in the civilian community, you almost have to maintain a "military mindset" in both operation and finances, unfortunately many operators will cut corners (especially when it comes to money) and eventually the inevitable may happen.
I worked the air races at Reno in the Jet Class and had good times there but also lost some good friends. The final blow was the crash of Mike Mangold (Red Bull Fame). After that I gave up working Reno and eventually gave up turning wrenches on jet warbirds. Totally retired last year.
Where did you get your F-100F ride at? I used to work for Flight Systems, Mojave CA, we had several F-100s we were operating in Germany as target tows. Replaced them with A-4s around 2002, about the time I left the company.