Take a ride back in time this weekend on Henry Ford's vintage aircraft

VIENNA

To board the vintage 1929 Ford Tri-Motor airplane at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport this weekend is to take a step back into America’s classic aviation history.

“Nothing has really changed,” said pilot Bill Thacker, who flew the plane to Youngstown from Port Clinton, where it is permanently housed at the Liberty Aviation Museum. “It’s exactly like it was – the smell, the sound and the feel.”

The Experimental Aircraft Association based in Oshkosh, Wis., has sponsored the plane’s visit through Sunday and is selling 15-minute rides to the public at $75 for adults. The EAA has two chapters in the Mahoning Valley.

The Tri-Motor, often referred to as the “Tin Goose” because of its silver metallic fuselage, seats only 10 passengers, but the interior is a reminder of what luxury air travel was like in the early 20th century.

“Henry Ford originally set the requirements for the way he wanted the plane to look,” said Thacker, a full-time pilot for United Airlines. “In those days, people traveled by train, so Ford wanted them to have the same experience when they got on the plane.”

Read more about the historic craft in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.