My Bonanza

For about ten years, I owned and flew this Beech S-35 Bonanza. It was fully instrument equipped. About one-third of my flight time was on instruments, either in instrument weather or under the hood.

I initially kept the Bonanza at Zahns airport, out on Long Island, NY. It no longer exists. When Zahns closed, I moved across the street to Republic airport.

I had one mid air collision in this aircraft. Climbing out of a Long Island airport at 130 mph, I ran into a seagull. It hit the leading edge of the left wing and splashed, like an insect on a car windshield. There was a rather large dent in the wing's leading edge, fortunately between the ribs. Nevertheless, it cost over $1,000 to fix (1975 dollars).