17 Dead -- Maine's Worst Plane Crash

That accident report is a quite a read, thanks for posting that Harley! That definitely hits close to home having parked next to the old Down East hangar there in RKD so many times. It's interesting that 3/21 was the preferred runway then, and there were no approaches to 13/31. It's exactly the opposite now. We could take off on 3/21, but we were too heavy to land on it, and now 13/31 have the good instrument approaches.

Rockland is one of those airports that holds an almost legendary status for those who flew commuters in there. The weather can get nasty there, in a hurry, and I don't think anyone who flies in there regularly doesn't have a "so there I was" story to go with it!
 
Matthew: On this forum probably only you, Dr. Bruce, and a scan few know that one of the prime landmarks(so to speak) would be as pictured, below. The lighthouse is just barely off the end of the runway. As you had written, conditions can change in moments, what with mist, fog, whatever. For those not familiar with the area, the lighthouse is at the end of a breakwater which extends a mile from land. However, its position is a lot shorter distance from the land upon which begins the runway.

The photo was taken from my uncle's back lawn. The runway starts not far out of the lower right quadrant of the photo. It's about a mile and two "turns" from where I took the photo. If an "unsuspecting" just happens to be driving on the road when a regional carrier is landing directly overhead it'll rattle the ear drums, so close is the apron to the road. Right, Matthew?

HR
 

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Absolutely! Two of the main roads around the airport run right under the approach to the runways. Between those roads and the approach to 31 that has you buzzing boats and hou$e$ on short final, I suspect we in the turbo prop community have scared quite a few Rockland residents.

I'll have to find some of my pictures from around there; we took everyone that visited out to the Owls Head lighthouse, and many to the lighthouse you showed above. I think everyone I flew with will agree, we HATE that airport, but we love going there! Awful weather, but when it wasn't 0/0 or 30G40 it was some of the best scenery in the country, whether from the land or sky!
 
Below is an unfamiliar airman's slightly better visual perspective of Rockland's best-known reporting point. One end of the runway is a matter of seconds out of the bottom right quadant of the photo. It doesn't take that fog or sea smoke long to creep in over terra firma.

HR
 

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Jerry,

Have you ever been to Vinalhaven? A friend of mine has a house there and we used to take the ferry from Rockland over to the island. Great place!
 
I've been to Vinalhaven, and its neighboring North Haven, on many occasions; generally by ferry out of Rockland, and years ago by the sail boat I once owned. When I was in high school(Rockland) we would have occasional exchange band concerts with Vinalhaven. We'd go out on the ferry, do the concert, be overnight guests at island residents' homes, and return to the flat land the next day. Many "frum awaaayyyy" may not know that North Haven has a rather spectacular airport, though PRIVATE it is. Thomas W. Watson, founder of IBM, had an estate on the island and had the landing strip built. It was long & strong enough to land and depart in his private jet. And on many occasions he hosted, in cooperation with Washington DC conferences, numerous foreign heads of state or other dignitaries. Watson was a major benefactor of Knox County Regional Airport KRKD and its nearby Owls Head Transportation Museum
http://www.ohtm.org.

Those big holes on Vinalhaven and North Haven(and Stonington) supplied granite to many of the USA's historic buildings.
(but I'd find it hard to live out there)

HR
 
Good info Jerry. Yes, its kind of remote on Vinalhaven. At least it was 20 years ago when I was going there. The house where I stayed did not have electric or phone. The house was still lit by kerosene laterns, some permanently attached to walls that would swing out. We entertained ourselves with an old Victrola and 78 rpm records. Truly and time warp experience.
 
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