Monthly Archives: April 2012

Another adventure in the Consolidated Commodore

On February 4, 1938, Hugh Woods was bringing one of CNAC’s twin-engine Commodore flying boats down from Chungking to Hankow. One-hundred miles west of the temporary capital, one of his oil coolers sprung a serious leak. Woody executed a perfect … Continue reading

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The Last Consolidated Commodore

Building on the CNAC and the Consolidated Commodore post I made yesterday, a few weeks ago, Jerry Butsko, a volunteer archivist at the San Diego Air and Space Museum who’d read China’s Wings, called me and brought to my attention … Continue reading

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interviewed by NPR’s Robin Young for “Here and Now”

A few weeks ago, Abbas Sabetian of the Alpine Club of Iran (ACI) and I were interviewed by NPR’s Robin Young for “Here and Now.” Our story, US and Iranian Climbers Practice Mountain Diplomacy, about the climbing exchange between the … Continue reading

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CNAC and the Consolidated Commodore

The Consolidated Commodore is the plane Moon Chin flew during the Hankow evacuation in October, 1938 (China’s Wings, Chapter 14), and he’s quite possibly the last Commodore pilot alive. An all-metal monoplane flying boat originally designed to meet US Navy … Continue reading

Posted in aviation history, China's Wings, CNAC, Moon Chin | 1 Comment

Jim Bridwell weighs in on “The Big Chop”

Climbing legend Jim Bridwell weighs in on “The Big Chop” on Cerro Torre earlier this year. Here are a few quotes: “This aggressive policing of individual liberty of others to conform to their ideal of morality are nothing less than … Continue reading

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China’s Wings and book clubs

On Tuesday night, I attended a meeting of the UCLA alumni book club that had chosen China’s Wings as their March book. We ate pizza, drank, wine, and had lively, enlightening conversations about William Bond, Moon Chin, and CNAC. I showed … Continue reading

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