It’s the weekend of May 12th and we are doing the pre-buy inspection of the plane. I’ve been taking a ton of pictures. Below is a picture of the cub. I’ll have the pre-buy photos up soon.

I might as well start documenting the journey and what better place to start than with the purchase of the airplane.

After months of looking I finally found the right plane. Actually all the credit goes to my brother Jay. He found it and with the help of some good friends convinced me that this was a really good deal. Of course, I did a lot of my own research but it helps to have a thumbs up from people you trust. So thanks Jay and Scott for letting me talk your ear off about this plane.

This Friday I’m leaving San Francisco for Dallas to make the inspection and test flight. Assuming all goes well, and I’m sure it will, I’ll trade a few green backs for a beautiful yellow cub.

It’s a 1946 model that has been recently restored from the ground up. The plane and the freshly overhauled motor has logged less than 15 hours.

This will be my 3rd Airplane and my third tail dragger. The first one was a 1938 cub and the second was a 1976 Citabria 7KCAB. Nearly all of my hours are in tail draggers, a fact that I’m actually quite proud of because for some reason I’m just really fond of that wheel configuration. Perhaps I like the nostalgia of it.

Despite my experience I’m a little nervous because I haven’t flown in a couple of years. I’m sure I’ll get over it after a few touch and goes. I haven’t looked forward to a weekend like this in a long long time.

Oh, and by the way. We are going to be shooting the pilot video for the adventure flight this Saturday as well. I’ll have it posted as soon as we get it edited.

I’m Paul Whitaker and I plan to fly a recently restored vintage WWII era aircraft 2200 miles across the United States to it’s new home in Sonoma County just north of San Francisco.

Even by 1940’s standards, the technology in this plane would be considered modest at best and certainly not designed for such a long cross-country trip. With a 150 mile range, the aircraft is constructed of wood and fabric, and has less instruments than a modern day moped. It has a top speed of 75 mph, and can only fly in good weather during the day.

The Airplane is a beautifully restored 1946 model J-3 Cub wearing a brilliant yellow color like no other airplane can. Along with a few friends, I’ll be making the trip in the summer of 2007 and you’re invited to come along for the ride.