By: Warren Gray
Copyright © 2023
“Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth,
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings.
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of…
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.”
— John Gillespie Magee, Jr., “High Flight,” August 1941.
On Saturday, June 10, 2023, my wife and I visited the amazing, Golden Age Air Museum (GAAM) at Grimes Airfield in Bethel, Pennsylvania, with a half-mile-long, grass-strip runway. The small airport has been in constant operation since 1946, and they have an incredible collection of at least 35 vintage aircraft, including a replica 1916 Sopwith Pup, 1917 Rumpler C.V, and 1918 Fokker Dr. I triplane, all in flying condition.
The replica Fokker triplane is painted in the wartime colors of Lothar von Richthofen, brother of Manfred von Richthofen, the fabled “Red Baron,” although Lothar was a skilled and highly-decorated ace in his own right, with 40 confirmed aerial kills, and he survived the war, only to die in a flying accident in 1922, at the age of 27. There’s also a 1918 SPAD XIII fighter on display, under construction, as well as a fully-restored, 1929 Waco GXE/ASO (serial #998) biplane in flying condition.
The Waco 10-series was produced from 1927 to 1933, initially by the Weaver Aircraft Company of Troy, Ohio, which changed its name to Waco (usually pronounced “Wah-co,” not “Way-co”) in 1928 to 1929. Their first, basic model was the GXE, powered by a 90-horsepower, Curtis OX-5 water-cooled, V-8 piston engine, but later variants, with different engines, had as much as 300 horsepower. The Model 10-W, or ASO variant, employed a Wright R-780 (J-5 Whirlwind), nine-cylinder, air-cooled, radial engine producing 220 horsepower.
The Waco GXE/ASO weighs about 2,000 pounds, with room for a pilot in the rear seat and two very thin passengers up front, a wingspan of nearly 31 feet, and has a cruising speed of about 98 miles per hour. For the modest fee of $168.54, including tax, GAAM offers 15-minute, biplane rides in their beautifully-restored, maroon-and-silver GXE/ASO.
My wife and I arrived 15 minutes early for my scheduled flight, and in today’s ultra-bubble-wrap atmosphere, there were surprisingly no lengthy safety briefings, and no liability waivers in confusing legalese to be signed in triplicate. The pilot, Mike (a former airline captain), and I soon climbed into the superbly-maintained, vintage aircraft, and took off from the grassy airstrip at 10:10 AM. It was wild and woolly from the very beginning, in an open cockpit at 85 knots (98 mph), on a bumpy grass field, and we quickly passed the four open hangars, ascending into the clear, azure-blue sky.
Author with 1929 Waco GXE/ASO biplane. Photo by author
Front-seat view upon takeoff. Photo by author
I was instantly reminded of the world’s most-famous aviation poem, “High Flight,” by John Gillespie Magee, Jr., a 19-year-old, American volunteer serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1941, and flying a British-made, Spitfire Mk. Vb fighter over England. He was tragically killed in a training accident, a mid-air collision on December 11, 1941, but not before his parents received his letter including the amazing, 14-line poem, which begins like this:
“Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth,
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings.
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of.”
Coincidentally, the upper and lower wing surfaces of my Waco biplane were actually painted silver, so I literally “danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings” that beautiful morning. The aircraft’s howling, 220-hp, radial engine was loud enough that ear plugs were required beneath a cloth flying helmet, but it was still a glorious experience!
Soaring past Grimes Airfield, and looking down upon the Pennsylvania countryside. Photos by author
Waco 1929 GXE/ASO in flight, and author in front cockpit. Photos by author
It was only a 15-minute flight, however, just long enough for a genuine, aerial thrill. I’ve done military barrel rolls in the past, in the back seat of an F-4E Phantom II jet fighter, and an OV-10A Bronco scout plane, both over Spain, but today was a tamer, tourist flight, with the rushing wind in the wires and a bouncing, lightweight aircraft made of wood and fabric, harkening past to the golden age of aviation, in the 1920s and 1930s. So, we circled the airstrip one final time, and swooped in for a smooth, tail-dragger landing near the end of the bold adventure.
Circling around Grimes Airfield, PA, and coming in for a landing. Photos by author
Author after landing, in front seat, giving cheerful, thumbs-up signal. Photo credit: Melody Gray
It was an incredibly memorable flight, one that most people never have the opportunity to experience. I’ve always been an aviation enthusiast, and my oldest son is a veteran Air Force pilot, so this open-air, biplane ride was certainly a once-in-a-lifetime thrill, something I’ll truly remember and cherish for years to come.
* * *
Author after his Waco GXE/ASO biplane flight. Photo credit: Melody Gray
Warren Gray is a retired, U.S. Air Force intelligence officer with experience in joint special operations and counterterrorism. He served in Europe and the Middle East, earned Air Force and Navy parachutist wings, four college degrees, including a Master of Aeronautical Science degree, and was a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Intelligence Operations Specialist Course, and the USAF Combat Targeting School. He is currently a published author and historian. You may view his website at: warrengray54.com.