WALT'S NEWS

Once again I have to apologize for failing to update the website, but I promise to do better in the future. There were a number of reasons for my lapse, but most had to do with the care-giving I was providing my late wife Jeanne, who died after a long and very sad seven-year illness. As most who have been in the care-giver position will tell you, it is a demanding task, one that saps your energy and your attitude. The last three years were particularly difficult. Mercifully for her, she was never aware of her mental and physical decline, nor was she ever in pain.

Matters were complicated when I encountered some physical problems of my own. What was initially interpreted as a requirement for hip replacement because of an arthritic condition turned out instead to be a plasmacytoma, a fancy word for cancer, of the hip. The initial diagnosis also noted some other problems, including the pancreas, and things looked pretty grim for a few months. Thanks to good treatment and 22 radiation sessions, it now looks as if the problems are contained, and while I will still have to have check-ups every 90 days or so things look good for the future. 

On the brighter side of things, I was pleased and honored to be enshrined in the National Aviation Hall of Fame on July 21, 2007, along with fellow honorees, Evelyn Johnson, Sally Ride, Fred Smith and Steve Fossett. It was a wonderful celebration, where I got to see many old friends, some of whom were previous enshrinees.

The joy in the celebration was tempered of course by the incredible loss of Steve Fossett just a few weeks later. I'd not known Steve before the July 21st event, but we got to talk a little bit there, and he came across as a basically happy Type Triple AAA personality, courteous, friendly, and very fixed on his next ventures. Perhaps no one will ever know what happened to him, but I suspect he may have been low and slow, saw something that interested him, and inadvertently entered a stall-spin situation that carried him to some crevice in the terrain that prevented finding him. It was a great loss not only to his family and to aviation, but to so many of his other pursuits as well.

All of the events relating to my failure to update the web-site also applied to my writing. I was fortunate enough to complete a book on the wonderful new Air Force Memorial. It is called Soaring to Glory: the United States Air Force Memorial, and recounts the magnificent effort of a very small group of people to bring it about despite surprise difficulties from an unexpected source. And I also updated my Air Force history, Beyond the Wild Blue, A History of the United States Air Force, 1947-2007. In between I did an interesting book called just World War II Aircraft although it was focused on just four fighters-the Lockheed P-38, North American P-51, Grumman F6F and Vought F4U. The outstanding eye appeal of the book came through the inclusion, in the very thick cover, of very authentic metal models of each of the aircraft. 

Now for the best news of all. After a long period of loneliness, I was fortunate enough to marry Terri Takacs, a wonderful woman who is the perfect companion. We've enjoyed a Caribbean cruise, plan to go to Paris and then Budapest, and then, if I play my cards right, acquire a couple of dogs and a cat. Terri is a skilled designer, has a keen artistic sense, is extremely clever and is, best of all, the nicest and kindest person in the world.

Happy Flying,

Walt

Copyright © 2008 Walter J. Boyne

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