As with most people, Jim has had an inherent interest in aviation most of his life; the kind that draws them to air shows. While a boy, he built different kinds of model airplanes until his teens, when cars and motorcycles (and girls) became his major interests. He was able to fly commercially many times as a child, but his first ride in a small aircraft was in a helicopter at about age 16. The first time he actually had the controls of an airplane was when he was 20 and spending a couple of weeks at NAS Pensacola as a Naval Academy Midshipman.
After graduating from the Naval Academy in 1971, Jim spent some time aboard ship while waiting for orders to navy flight training. His vision was not good enough to become a pilot so he was trained as a navigator. In October 1972 he was designated a Naval Flight Officer. He later served as a navigator, tactical coordinator and eventually a mission commander in a west coast P-3 squadron. He made two deployments to Southeast Asia before his release from active duty in 1976.
While in flight training in Florida and Texas, Jim took an interest in building and flying radio-controlled model airplanes. His main interest was in scale models, especially large models. Several years later in Idaho Falls he became known for one of his models, a 1/3 scale WWI era Sopwith "Pup" which he flew locally and at various contests. In 1986, 1987 and 1988 Jim won "Best WWI" aircraft at the Quarter Scale Association of America meet in Las Vegas, Nevada.
In 1983 Jim purchased a used Weedhopper ultralight. It was slow and the performance was very limited, but it was great to actually fly. He flew it for a couple of years and then disassembled it to do some modifications.....he never flew it again as long as he owned it. He was quite involved with R.C. models and found that he didn't have time to do both. He did fly it one more time after selling it in 1992, and of course he wondered why he hadn't found the time to fly it more.
In 1991 Jim was taken for a ride in a small, homebuilt aircraft that was assembled from a kit. He was hooked; he wanted to build his own plane. He started taking flying lessons in the fall of 1991 and received his private pilot's license in February 1992. Shortly after obtaining his private license, he purchased a 1961 two-seat, Piper Colt in which he has logged over 600 hours of flight time. This proved to be the most economical way to fly until he could decide what type of plane to build. In 1997, Jim purchased plans and started construction of a replica WWI Nieuport 12. It wasn't exactly what he wanted to build, but it was the right vintage and it had two seats, where most WWI planes of interest had only one.
Jim still flies the Colt as often as he can. It is a simple airplane, no fancy equipment. He enjoys basic flying but also the challenge of getting from one place to
another without relying on all the space-age navigation equipment.....a holdover from his
original navigator training. He and his wife, Sherry, belong to the Southeast Idaho chapter of the Short Wing Piper Club and they enjoy participation in some of the regional fly-ins each summer. Jim also enjoys giving rides in the Colt and has taken over 70 people up over the years. He continues to work on the Nieuport but is only about half finished with the construction. He did get a little boost last summer when he had the chance to take a hop in one. Jim is really looking forward to finishing and flying the Nieuport but the building has been interesting, too.