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From the archives: Bob Buck on William T. Piper

I know a wonderful man who believes that one of life’s greatest gifts is the opportunity to work. He believes also that age doesn’t keep you from doing what you want to do. He proved this by starting an airplane factory at 50. He learned to fly that same year – 1931. Today his firm has made more airplanes than any other in the world. The man is William Thomas Piper.

From the archives: Bob Buck on radar

While datalink weather is all the rage these days, some 60 years ago, Captain Robert N. Buck thought another hot weather technology, onboard radar, was ready to change the world. This article originally appeared in the November, 1956 edition of Air Facts, and it’s still a fascinating look at how pilots interact with new technology.

From the archives: Bob Buck gets a Boeing 707 check out

This in-depth report, originally published in the September 1960 edition of Air Facts, is Bob Buck at his best. The legendary airline pilot and author takes us along as he checks out in the Boeing 707, the defining airplane of the jet age. From practicing maneuvers to taking a check ride and flying to Europe, Buck explains how the big jet flies, why it’s different and how it is changing the airline business.

From the archives: to Hong Kong in a 707

Once again the Air Facts archives offer a mesmerizing flying story from record-setting airline captain Bob Buck. In this article, from the March 1969 edition, Buck takes us from New York to all kinds of exotic places in his Boeing 707: Frankfurt, Athens, Tel Aviv, India and finally Hong Kong.

From the archives: Journey to Wichita

One of the first articles published on Air Facts when we relaunched in 2011 was Rob Buck’s delightful trip down memory lane, telling the story of a boyhood flight to Wichita with his father (legendary pilot Bob Buck). Here, we share the other side of the story: Bob Buck’s account of this same flight, as told in the April 1958 edition of Air Facts.

The art of flying on silent wings

In our latest trip through the Air Facts archives we share a beautiful meditation on soaring, written by legendary airline pilot Bob Buck. Bob was a pilot’s pilot, and his thoughtful, evocative description of what it’s like to fly without an engine will make you wish you were soaring with him. Think gliders are for wimps? Think again.

Connie flight from Paris to Cairo, 1951

From time to time, we revisit an original Air Facts article that we think would make enjoyable and worthwhile reading today. So it is with Bob Buck’s “Flight to Cairo,” the legendary airline pilot’s story of flying a TWA Constellation from Paris to Cairo in the days before jet engines and GPS.

Hurricane, inside

“This remarkable account of a remarkable flight first appeared in the January, 1945, issue of Air Facts. Hurricanes haven’t changed a bit but hurricane research flying sure has.” –Ed. The airplane we use is a B-17, but it’s a lot different from most 17s. The turrets are off and so are the guns and the armament, and instead there is a lot of test equipment that we don’t talk about out loud.

50 years ago in Air Facts

The following article first appeared in the October, 1961 issue of Air Facts. The wisdom found in Bob’s advice is still sound 50 years later. And, yes, we really did do “canyon approaches” back in the good old days.- Ed.