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 unique, family-owned airport in Southwestern Ohio, known for its extremely challenging and hazardous runway features, including a displaced threshold, uphill slope, and power lines.
- The author used Brownie's as a practical training ground to teach student pilots crucial short-field techniques and confidence for emergency landings in difficult conditions.
- The article highlights Paul Freeman's "Abandoned and Little Known Airfields" website as a valuable resource preserving the history of such unique, often defunct, airfields, reflecting the nostalgia and sadness for their disappearance.
See a mistake? Contact us.
