Mt. Healthy Airport Stories
Bud Wissel
In the mid 30's, 1934-1935, people would go to the airport and
look at and talk about airplanes for hours.
In the 30's there were a lot of bi-planes from WWI, open
cockpits with WWI engine OX5. There was a water cooled engine
that had its radiator down between the wheels of the plane.
People would take plane rides in these planes for just a ride.
Back in those days, auto gasoline was selling for a dime a
gallon and hi-test was twelve cents a gallon, gasoline for
airplanes was selling for .25 a gallon.
Rides took about ten minutes. The plane would take off over
Livingston Rd, turn south, fly over Galbraith to Pippin Rd., and
then turn north, fly up Pippin and return to the airport.
George South owned a couple of airplanes in which he would take
passengers for rides. He also instructed students to fly. He
always flew with them until they were ready to solo. Then when
he felt they were qualified, they would solo. South stayed with
the airport until WWII started. He then took a job as an
inspector with the F.A.A.
In the mid 30's there was not a great deal of vehicular traffic.
In fact, on a good day you might see ten cars when driving north
on Colerain Avenue from North Bend Road to Colerain and
Springdale to the airport.
From Cheviot, Ohio to White Oak you might see 2 cars. But in spite of the lack of cars, there still was a great interest in planes and flying. When a plane would fly over, people would come out of their homes and point to the plane as it flew over. They would not go back inside until the plane was out of sight.
You could buy a kit for the Heath Parasol plane for about $2000. The
kits were advertised in various magazines. A fellow bought and
assembled one, and tried to take off from the Mt. Healthy Airport.
He started where most of the planes started, got part way down the
runway, cut the engine, and didn’t get off the ground.
He then came back and George South who was managing the airport at
that time just shook his head. The pilot took the plane all the way
back to Colerain Pk to get a longer run, on the runway.
He got off the ground and again George South shook his head and
mumbled something, South walked away. He did not approve of the
pilot taking the risk, South knew, it just was not going to be
right. The plane got above 100 ft. off the ground and started
listing to the right.
There was something wrong with the controls, they were just not
right. The further he got, the lower he got, the engine was becoming
overheated. The engine was a 4 cyl. Henderson motor-cycle engine. He
lost power, but did not come straight down, but did have a kind of a
hard landing. The wheels folded up underneath him and the nose dug
into the ground
People at the airport got into a car and went over the crash site on
Poole Rd. The pilot, when they arrived was wiping the bridge of his
nose. Before the pilot was taken to a doctor, he said keep everybody
away from there and don’t let anyone smoke. Then he left. But was
back shortly and all he received from the crash was a small cut on
the bridge of his nose, that the doctor covered with a little patch.
He didn’t try to fly it again. So much for the Heath Parasol plane
kit and $2000.
Normally airplanes would take off from the Colerain Ave. end of the
airport, because of prevailing winds. One time a plane took off from
the western end of the airport and flew over Colerain Ave. The plane
did not fly very far before the engine choked out about 500 ft. from
Colerain Ave. The plane was very distinguished looking, as it was
coal
black. The plane crashed after it stalled out, killing the pilot.
Another sad episode concerning the airport.
During the thirties there was a club at the Mt. Healthy Airport that
owned soaring planes. This was a type of plane that had no engine.
You tied a cable to the back of a car and attached it to the soaring
plane. The car would then speed down the runway towing the plane.
When the plane would get high enough, the pilot would cut loose and
soar, as long as he could maintain altitude.
On one occasion the soaring plane was not able to maintain the
altitude. The plane which was made of wood, hit the ground, and
became a pile of splinters. The pilot walked away, but members of
the club were upset that they lost a plane.
Near the end of WWII and immediately after, during the late
40's, Jerry Greenfield and Joe Rudolph, a music teacher at Colerain
High School ran the airport. They operated a flying school and had
5-6 instructors, many of them pilots from the Air Corps, and over
100 students, both men and women taking flying lessons on the G.I.
bill.
This was one of the largest flying schools in the entire area and was the envy of many other airports.