Macs next door neighbor happened to be Birmingham’s only World War 1 ace, Jimmy Meissner. Jimmy would tell Mac tales of flying and combat. That was the beginning of his quest to fly. For his 14th birthday, Jimmy took him on his first airplane ride. His dream was coming true but not even in his wildest dreams could he have imagined that this ride would be just the first of thousands of hours flying, or that his feats of daring in the face of great danger would rival those of the flying aces of World War 1.
Jimmy Meissner 117 Air Refueling Wing, Alabama Air National Guard
Retired Engineer Transforms Boeing 727 Into His Dream Home
Picture it: you’re walking through the woods, enjoying a pleasant hike. The sun is shining, birds are chirping, and you’re enjoying the peaceful tranquility. Then, all of a sudden, you stumble upon an airplane! Thoughts
race through your head—is it a plane crash? a junkyard? It could be anything. But if you happen to find yourself in Hillsboro, Oregon, then it could only be one thing: Bruce Campbell’s one of a kind home.
Bruce Campbell certainly was not the first person to ever dream up a unique house. From boats to cars to even school buses, people have repurposed all sorts of things to turn them into homes. But while other oddball houses have become more common of late, Campbell’s home definitely stands out from the rest.
For ages, people have built their homes in trees as well as on the ground. Houses have been made of bricks and stones, wood, mud, leaves, even vines. But an airplane?
There were more than a few obstacles standing in Bruce Campbell’s way when he decided to convert a Boeing 727 into a livable home. First, plenty of laws surrounding zoning and construction had to be tackled. Not to mention the Herculean task of dragging the gigantic aircraft onto his property. Then came the actual task of converting a commercial jet into living spaces. For anyone who has ever ridden in a plane, it’s not hard to imagine that turning those cramped cabins into a living room, kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom is easier said than done! Lucky for Bruce, he is one handy fellow!
Before retiring, Bruce Campbell worked as an electrical engineer. Always having had a knack for invention, Bruce started to collect old planes so he could up-cycle them into mind-blowing masterpieces, believing that they had potential beyond their original purpose. Thanks to his amazing imagination, he was able to transform a Boeing 727 into the most unique home on earth! Let’s go have a look inside!
While Barb and Nancy were in Taiwan this fall, they had the honor of meeting Steve Lin, one of the founders of the Facebook group, The China Air War. Nancy has been a fan of his site for a long time, so having the chance to sit down for a chat with him was terrific.
Outtakes of early 1930s Army aerobatic team, the Three Men on the Flying Trapeze, with team members Claire Lee Chennault, Luke Williamson and Billy McDonald
For 2019, MWSA awarded The Shadow Tiger a gold medal in the History category.
Review (Military Writers Society of America) review of “The Shadow Tiger: Billy McDonald, Wingman to Chennault”
The Shadow Tiger, Wingman to Chennault by William C. McDonald III and Barbara L. Evenson is the story of the life of William C. “Billy” McDonald Jr., written by his son as a tribute to his father whom he calls an unsung hero, “a man who contributed to world history.”
I was attracted to this title because I was familiar with the name Chennault, as in U.S. Army Brigadier General Claire Lee Chennault, legendary founder of the Flying Tigers. To many of us, the name Flying Tigers conjures up images of painted Shark nosed P-40 Warhawks flown by a group of American volunteer pilots in China fighting against a much more modern Japanese Air Force that was invading China in 1936 before the beginning of World War II. However, that part of the story is not part of the narrative in this book which is a prelude to that glorious history.
This an excellent reference book on the life of one of the American volunteer pilots who helped Chennault from the beginning, training Chinese pilots to fly before and during World War II. The authors call it an attempt to “portray events, locales, and conversations from the letters, magazines, and first-hand stories available to us. We have relied on personal accounts where ever possible.”
Having been passed over for a promotion to lieutenant in his late twenties, McDonald along with a colleague and fellow member of a flying demonstration group (the Flying Trapezers), fellow pilot Sargent Luke Williamson, had to face the prospect of no further promotions in the Army. Captain Chennault, who had known them for years, advised them to take the offer of a Chinese Nationalist General Mow Pang-Tsu to teach Chinese pilots to fly, using advanced U.S. military techniques and American planes.
A few months later, Chennault’s dispute over air war policy with the brass found him without prospects for promotion and retiring as a Captain to take a contract with China to go travel there and evaluate the Chinese Air Force.
There are many colorful historical figures that the American volunteers interacted with, the most famous being Madam Chaing Kai-shek, who became Chennault’s boss. Upon first meeting with Chennault in China “Madam Chaing expressed concern about Chennault’s rank as Captain, considering he would be dealing with admirals and generals.” Chennault made a reference to the prospect of asking a cousin, a former governor of the state to appoint him as a colonel in the state militia, and Madam Chaing said “that will do nicely.” So he attained the rank at that moment and there is no evidence of him being appointed to the state militia.
The book chronicles the period when they were training Chinese pilots under their contract with the Chinese Air Force. Billy McDonald’s exploits as Colonel Chennault’s right-hand man and advisor come into sharp focus, including his time as a ferry pilot carrying supplies.
The book is heavily illustrated with Cartoons, photos, and copies of letters from the day—so much that they seem to get in the way at times with the flow of the narrative. Once the reader gets used to the style it is easier to follow the flow. And all this information is relevant to setting the context and enriching the historical account.
For anyone interested in aviation history, especially American aviation history and World War II, this would be an invaluable book.
After hearing that the Japanese had bombed both Pearl Harbor and CNAC’s home base of Hong Kong, Mac still flew his passengers to their destination.
There he was told that Hong Kong could not be reached on radio and that he might be the only CNAC plane left.
Mac was instructed NOT to go to Hong Kong.
Mac took off anyway and arrived in Hong Kong at 1 am. CNAC personel were ok and 5 planes were not hit.
274 people were evacuated by CNAC before the Japanese overran Hong Kong. Mac’s plane was the first and last flight out of Hong Kong. His plane was rated for 22 people and his last flight carried over 70 people. The plane barely made it off runway with gunfire behind them.
Within 2 weeks Mac and 2 other CNAC planes went to Toungoo, picked up 3 ground crews of Flying Tigers and flew them to Kunming. The AVG planes arrived the next day.
The following day the Japanese attacked Kunming (as usual) but they had angry Americans waiting for them–only 1 Japanese plane made it back to its base.
They never attacked Kunming by air again.
So what is my OPINION of what was said between Mac and Chennault? I think Chennault explained that he needed Mac to get 3 planes to get them out of Burma or the Japanese would destroy the AVG before they even got started. We will never know for sure but I do know Mac remained his wingman for the rest of Chennnault’s life.
To get the whole story, read my book! “The Shadow Tiger: Billy McDonald, Wingman to Chennault”
