Winni by Air
 

While working on our dock on East Bear Island this Friday afternoon, several airplanes passed overhead as they prepared to land at the Laconia airport. Curious where these folks are from, and now coming to their places on our wonderful lake. Several years ago, we had neighbors who flew in from New Jersey and Texas. 🐻

I used to come up from CT.

Now my comings and goings are from Laconia.

FL to NH
 

We had friends who divided their time between Naples FL and Gilford.

He flew a Piper turboprop back and forth. Landed at LCI (Laconia).

Dave

I come up from Mass, it's fun but doesn't really save time.

My sister's family used to fly up from Reston, VA for an occasional weekend in a Cessna 172. That was fun but eventually they just moved to NH.

Slightly off topic, but I have memories of dropping off a family member in the 1980s at Laconia for a flight to New York City--not sure which airport. Does anyone remember this airline service or any other that has served Laconia over the years?

Isn't that Bill Marriott in the big white jet that circles out over Tuftonboro, arriving or departing from Chicago or someplace, before landing at Laconia Airport?

He always flutters the wings as he flies by ......... helloooooooo and gooooodbye!:D:D

Welcome back FLL


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Yellow Birds
 

Northeast Airlines served Laconia for several years. Their twin engine Yellow Birds would flock to our area.

We also would see the "Caroline" there when the Kennedy family came to ski in New Hampshire.

Go to flightaware.com you can track all planes leaving and arriving at Laconia airport. Click on the flight and you will see where they came from and where they are going. During the school year some that can send a plane to pick their kid up from Brewster academy and fly them home for the weekend. Sunday you will see a plane return from the same airport it went to on Friday.

Phl - Laconia
 

In the late 70's my parents would put me on a plane from Phila. to Boston to Laconia. I think the airline from Boston to Laconia was Winnipesaukee Air.

Here's a breif article with a little history of Laconia Airport

https://www.laconiadailysun.com/comm...b8fa38b42.html

Very interesting article. Thank you for posing

My father and his partners owned Skymaster when they ran the FBO there, late 80s to early 90s. That 91 real estate downturn was a tough one in NH!

Probably Precision Airlines. Headquartered in Springfield VT bt eventually relocated to Manchester NH. It became an Eastern Express Carier and then Northwest Airlink service before going out of business in the early 90's.

The original owners, Walt and Suki Fawcett sold it in the late 80's and I believe they are the people operating the airport/airpark in Wolfeboro, now.

conducting
 

Back in the late 60s-early 70s, my years as a counsellor at Camp Idlewild, I did not like being in camp on opening or closing day. The result was myself and two other staff members did "conducting" duties. We would travel to NYC the day before and went out to the airports to meet campers flying from various (usually far-off) places and get them onto the overnight charter buses up to camp. We would next fly to Boston and repeat the job, and come back to camp on the bus with the campers. Occasionally, this involved a flight between Laconia and Boston on what was then Winnipesaukee Aviation. We soon discovered that it was the only airline that was always on time, handled unaccompanied minors without batting an eye, and dealt safely and creatively with weather issues in order to stay on time. They earned our affectionate nickname of "Pterodactyl Airlines". They must have enjoyed that - I overheard a funny background conversation on the phone the following year between a supervisor and a ticket agent using that name!

It's to bad they don't have some kind of service there now.

If it made money, there would be service.

Obviously you are right.

There are small charter companies that will do this service in a small airplane, but think a couple thousand dollars if you want to do this. ($650/hr to charter a single engine plane). These guys would do it for you.

https://www.skylineflight.com/

From Long Island, NY to Laconia $ 4,750.00 :eek::eek::eek: However, that is round trip :)

Every summer for the past 26 years, we have been flying up from Arlington, VA to Winnipesaukee to stay on Sandy Island. The docks for the camp boat are on the opposite side of Winni, in Mirror Lake, so we used Laconia only once, when water taxi service from Fay's Boathouse direct to the island was available and affordable. Moultonboro Airpark is fairly convenient to the Sandy dock, so that's what we use, with Laconia as a bad-weather backup. For the first 10 years or so, we used Lakes Region Airpark, and I am still sad about it being closed as it embodied so much of the soul of Winnipesaukee, with bright blue water all around, a seaplane dock, and the legacy of the Horn family.

Only $1365 from Manchester. Flight time is 24 minutes. Without traffic I can get there in 50 minutes or so so what I’ll need to decide is that extra 26 minutes saved worth the money :)


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Is that one way or round trip?


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You are paying for the airplane to get to you and go back to its base too. Manchester to Laconia is a drive, no brainer. LI to Laconia would probably be a 5 or 6 hour drive no traffic. In that plane it would be about an hour.

It's a 5 hour + drive as you stated, I've done it 100's of times, but 4750.00 to save about 6 hours travel time (travel too and from airport and misc airport wait time) is a little too rich for my blood.

Worth every penny! That Cirrus is an incredible aircraft. I did my transition training for this plane over the winter in Naples, FL. One of the best features about it is the aircraft parachute.

Now if I can just scrape the $$ together to buy one....

You just wrote my story, except for the Naples FL part, rusty pilot, back into flying last October. Working on my IR out of Hanscom now in a '16 SR 20.

Didn't say it was economically prudent, just faster. The LI to Laconia, or even Moultonboro commute is about perfect if you fly it yourself in your own aircraft. It will never be cheaper than driving though.

I'm all for saving time to be at the lake longer and could do it on occasion if I wish but just can't justify and extra 4000.00 for a round trip to save about 6 hours in my head

I hear you, most people can't, but the fact this business exists at all means some people can do use this type of service. I see them coming and going a lot at Fitchburg.

Good luck! I hope you enjoy flying the Cirrus as much as I do.

Thanks, I like the 20, but I love the 22.

Assuming two people, that's about $2400 /6 hours, or $400/hour? Buy a new boat for $100000 and use it the average 35 hours per year. Hmmm.
We're just not talking about saving $$ here. Some like to fly, some like to boat and some like...

Some like both, like I do. Lol.


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Get your private pilot's license!! It's not nearly that expensive if you fly yourself.

If it floats, flies or ...

it's cheaper to rent!

I would love to but I am a diabetic


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In the 80’s my Dad had a Cessna 172 and used to fly from Beverly, MA up to Moultonboro when I was vacationing. At one point a friend of his got his instructor’s ticket and wanted to take his first student gratis before he started charging and asked me if I was interested. Dad offered his plane gratis. I turned it down because, at that time, if the leaves were ruffling in the trees it was too turbulent for me. BIG MISTAKE. A couple of years later Dad had a heart attack and gave up his license/sold his plane. He loved flying and would have loved to sit in the right seat of his plane while I flew.


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You can still get a Class 3 Medical, and fly as a private pilot with diabetes. A bit more documentation and proof that your blood sugar levels are under control, but not impossible by any means.

Great to know. Thx. Blood sugar under control for years.


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Or, you can give the gift of flying lessons to a close relative. My wife took a few lessons to build comfort level. If something happened to me, she could get talked down OK. I gave my daughter flying lessons as a graduation present. I stopped flying, but it was still a great joy to sit in the right seat while she drove.

It's called a special issuance. You'll have to jump through a few hoops but it can be done, especially if you are under good control and have no other complications like eye or cardiac issues. Make sure you get advice before you apply, better to have your information secured before the exam, it makes the process much faster.

AGREE. a flight surgeon, not a PCP.