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This was a daunting project from the very start. How do I recreate this tutorial with updated information and maintain the original ambience felt throughout Charles' creation? I did not want to "improve" on his work, because there was no room for improvement. It was fantastic!
I guess a good place to start would be to talk about the man.
"Glad you're here, hope you're having fun flying with DC-3
Airways! I sure enjoyed pulling the pieces together."
-Charles Wood, Jr.
Charles Henry Wood, Jr. Where to start? Pilot, amateur radio operator, athelete, all-around genius, and a great guy with a huge heart. Charles moved around a lot, especially after retiring from his job of 35 years at Westinghouse in several divisions. He founded DC-3 Airways, which went live back in December of 1999 (yes, we have a 25th Anniversary coming up real quick) while at the same time working on this tutorial.
"This VA was a year and a half in the making. Side-tracking for six months to develop a
navigation tutorial website was part of the reason. Stopping to help two other VAs get off the
ground held things up, too, as well as my duties as a senior vice-president in yet
another fledgling VA. All time well and enjoyably spent."
- Charles Wood, Jr.
of Bluegrass Airways before the 10am flight at the Carolinas
Aviation Museum. Click image for full-size photo.
As you can probably imagine, Charles was an avid aviation enthusiast, and in particular was in love with the Douglas DC-3. He set his sights on flying at a young age and took flying lessons at Rutherford Airport, where he amassed over 450 hours of flight time and earned his Private Pilot Certificate. He started on his instrument rating and was ready for his checkride when, as we say, life got in the way.
Fast-forward to 1977, when Charles returned from Iran. There were college loans, family, and work that occupied the majority of his time. Flying lessons became a luxury.
Charles took a job at Westinghouse in the Radio-TV division fresh out of college. He was involved in work on early color televisions, and also had a hand in developing the first television remote control. His career spanned 35 years,and he retired in 1992. He was a very giving man, but preferred to work with charities and individuals in his community rather than a "faceless organization."
Of course, Charles was a multi-talented man. He was a track star in high school and college, served as a Little League coach (later president), traveled, took up geneology, and even wrote a novel entitled The Message, my next read. In retrospect, while I was recreating his tutorial, I found myself repeatedly thinking, "Man, he had a knack for writing!"
To quote the once-great comedian Bill Cosby, "I said all that to say this!" It has been an honor being a part of this VA, being its president, and coming to know a vast majority of you all. I would like to thank each and every one of you for your contributions large and small (all the same to me). Enjoy this tutorial, and me we keep going for another 25 years!
P.S. - this was 29 web pages and 389 files. I may have "fat-fingered" the keyboard on occasion. If you find an error, please let me know. Thanks!