Zero three bravo

by Mariana Gosnell

With all the exhilaration that comes from being up in the sky alone, with the warmth that comes from being on the ground with the people at small airports, Mariana Gosnell tells the story of her three-month adventure in her single-engine tailwheel airplane, Zero Three Bravo. The adventure began on a hot summer day when "the city seemed particularly punishing to body and spirit." Enticed by the ribbon of sky that she could see from her office window high above Manhattan, she decided to fly her small plane solo across the country and back. Taking a leave from her job, and packing all the clothes, charts, and emergency equipment that she could squeeze into her Luscombe Silvaire (a Model 8F built in 1950, with two seats, high wings, and a 95-horsepower engine), she sets out to fly from one small airport to another around the United States. We're with her in the cockpit, sharing the excitements, sights, and even the techniques of flying, as she cruises low, navigating almost solely by landm