Up and away: Fly Free returns to Prairie
A view from Scott Cook’s cockpit as he prepares to make his descent to the Prairie du Chien Municipal Airport runway. (Steve Van Kooten/Courier Press)
Hannah and Noah Gerlach rode in a four-seater airplane during the Prairie du Chien Fly Free event on September 21.
By Steve Van Kooten
Noah Gerlach, 11, and his sister, Hannah, 9, boarded a small airplane for a 20-minute flight over Prairie du Chien and the Mississippi River on September 21. Less than 10 minutes later, they were 1,500 feet in the air, looking down on the river’s complex series of ponds and backwaters and the city’s honeycomb of buildings and roads.
They were two of 95 children who flew that day as part of the Young Eagles Fly-Free event hosted by the Prairie du Chien Municipal Airport; the Experimental Aviation Association Waterloo, Dubuque and Viroqua chapters; and the Civil Air Patrol.
“We’re trying to give them an itch to fly at a early age,” said Adam Thatcher, one of the Waterloo chapter members at the event. “This gets the kids involved, and we get to fly.”
Thatcher, an flight instructor and pilot, didn’t have his plane at the event, but 11 pilots donated their time and fuel to make the Fly Free a success. The nine pilots and 16 volunteers helped 63 kids take their first airplane flight and 19 take their second.
Noah and Hannah’s pilot, Scott Cook, brought the kids and their mother, Monica, over to see his Cirrus airplane. With its 310 horsepower engine, the four-person craft can reach speeds over 185 miles per hour and fly above 18,000 feet.
Cirrus planes cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $800,000, and that’s before you start adding the bells and whistles. Many of their aircrafts have more than a $1 million price tag.
Cook assisted the children to put on their headsets and strap into their four-point harnesses. The Cirrus is different than most small planes, and Todd Berry, Prairie du Chien airport manager, called it “a computer with wings.”
Cook noted a small hatch at the back of the plane’s cab, saying that’s where a parachute deploys in case of an emergency.
“The gentleman who started the [Cirrus] company was in a mid-air collision, so he decided that every plane they manufactured would come with a parachute,” said Cook.
On the ground, John Nocero, a flight crew volunteer, pointed out that Young Eagles events also give volunteers an opportunity to gain experience.
“They’re working to learn how to use the computers, do the paperwork, make the contact authorizations, get the signatures and giving the [kids] credit,” he said.
Many of the volunteers at the event never touched the airplane controls. Some were at desks, matching kids with their pilots, escorting them to the waiting area and chaperoning them to the aircrafts to get them ready.
“The ground volunteers are registering, setting up and tearing down,” said Nocero. “We’ve got volunteers out there doing traffic control and radio communications.”
Nocero credited the John Dutcher, one of the pilots, and McGregor Public Library Children’s Librarian Luana Stiemke for making the event possible.
The Waterloo chapter of the EAA provides flying opportunities for 500-600 children per year, according to Nocero. Pilots from Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin come down for the events, hoping to encourage the next generation of flyers.
Rich Calvert, Waterloo volunteer, said, “This isn’t just a free flight; it’s an experience. It’s the first time some of these kids have ever flown.”
