An acquaintance named Mark Burton recently sent me a copy of his book about an airport owned and operated by his family called Brownie’s. A few days later, I met a guy at a party who regaled me (unsolicited) with wild and woolly tales about flying out of a now defunct airport called Brownie’s with his father, who kept an airplane there. I know it, and found, on Paul Freeman’s great site Abandoned and Little Known Airfields, lots of early Brownie’s lore and photos in the Southwestern Ohio section. So it seemed like the synergy was there to share my memories of this rather unique ‘drome.
Brownie’s is a Field Out from the Past
Key Takeaways:
- Brownie's was a uniquely challenging, family-owned airport in Southwestern Ohio, characterized by its short, narrow, uphill runway with a displaced threshold, a drop-off, and significant obstacles like telephone and high-tension wires.
- The author used Brownie's as a difficult but valuable training ground to teach pilots essential short-field techniques and build confidence for handling emergency landings in unideal conditions.
- The article underscores the historical significance of such unique and often defunct airfields, lamenting their disappearance and highlighting resources like "Abandoned and Little Known Airfields" that preserve their stories in aviation history.
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