Art was a good friend of my dad's . I have very fond memories of hanging out in the pits with art at the Reno Air Races when I was a kid. The man was a great guy.
I built balsa wood models as a kid, remote control planes in my teens...(learned all the stunts of course)....(taught me what fly's and what struggles to fly...and why planes do what they do in wind) My first time ever airborne was in Art Scholl's Pitts Special...no lie...my retired (USAF Colonel, inspiration) uncle arranged it, out of Rialto/Fontana California, around 1979. The pilot in command (not Art!) was the only person allowed to fly Art's planes and was a good friend of my uncle. The Chipmunk was being altered with strobe light machine gun barrels on the wings for a movie. He knew my history and gave me the stick right away. We did a lot of aerobatics of course...and he let me do each one myself...the hammerhead stall (with plenty of tail-wag after the turn around) was my favorite...outside maneuvers were a bit much for a first timer...so I just turned it over and attempted level inverted flight....even that was a little more uncomfortable than I expected... He laughed the whole one hour flight said I was a natural and should seek my license. 35 years later, (a wife and 4 kids, now grown) I got to where I can solo.....but too much going on helping the kids with their lives to submerge myself into flying regularly....maybe someday. Hope I didn't bore you....I just love flight.
I was still up at the Reno Air Race site on Monday (last day of the races was Sunday) preparing for the long trip home and fondly remembering his flight the day before while he was down south shooting the ill-fated footage for Top Gun. I didn't know I had video-taped his last performance. Continue to rest in peace, dear sir.
So sad… he was even commenting on the danger of flying inverted flat spin in his pits - a manoeuvre so dangerous, that it subsequently took his life during the TopGun filming in 1986 - R.I.P. Art !
he was in an inverted flat spin into the ocean? Makes you wonder what happened? He couldnt recover? Mechanical failure? I find it hard to believe that Art Scholl couldnt recover
I wonder why the tail numbers on his airplanes always had “13” in them ? His Super chipmunk was N13Y and the Pitts was N13AS with the “AS” obviously being Arts initials.
The BEST EVER , THE GOAT ,
Art was a good friend of my dad's . I have very fond memories of hanging out in the pits with art at the Reno Air Races when I was a kid. The man was a great guy.
I built balsa wood models as a kid, remote control planes in my teens...(learned all the stunts of course)....(taught me what fly's and what struggles to fly...and why planes do what they do in wind) My first time ever airborne was in Art Scholl's Pitts Special...no lie...my retired (USAF Colonel, inspiration) uncle arranged it, out of Rialto/Fontana California, around 1979. The pilot in command (not Art!) was the only person allowed to fly Art's planes and was a good friend of my uncle. The Chipmunk was being altered with strobe light machine gun barrels on the wings for a movie. He knew my history and gave me the stick right away. We did a lot of aerobatics of course...and he let me do each one myself...the hammerhead stall (with plenty of tail-wag after the turn around) was my favorite...outside maneuvers were a bit much for a first timer...so I just turned it over and attempted level inverted flight....even that was a little more uncomfortable than I expected... He laughed the whole one hour flight said I was a natural and should seek my license. 35 years later, (a wife and 4 kids, now grown) I got to where I can solo.....but too much going on helping the kids with their lives to submerge myself into flying regularly....maybe someday. Hope I didn't bore you....I just love flight.
@@readmore3634 great story
I was still up at the Reno Air Race site on Monday (last day of the races was Sunday) preparing for the long trip home and fondly remembering his flight the day before while he was down south shooting the ill-fated footage for Top Gun. I didn't know I had video-taped his last performance. Continue to rest in peace, dear sir.
The best there ever was.
Very TRUE
So sad… he was even commenting on the danger of flying inverted flat spin in his pits - a manoeuvre so dangerous, that it subsequently took his life during the TopGun filming in 1986 - R.I.P. Art !
he was in an inverted flat spin into the ocean? Makes you wonder what happened? He couldnt recover? Mechanical failure? I find it hard to believe that Art Scholl couldnt recover
Pilot. ..knows the danger of passing out from " G" force instilled apound theme..in acrobatic maneuver..
I miss him so much you will always be a big part of me.
I wonder why the tail numbers on his airplanes always had “13” in them ? His Super chipmunk was N13Y and the Pitts was N13AS with the “AS” obviously being Arts initials.
Except the other Super Chipmunk, N1114V which belonged to Skip Volk first.