Meadowlakes World War II veteran takes wild ride to mark 88th birthday
DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR
MEADOWLAKES — How would someone who has flown in 54 different types of aircraft mark his 55th?
Well, if you’re World War II veteran and retired aeronautical engineer Lan Thomson, you crawl in one of the best fighter planes the world has known: the North American P-51 Mustang.
“It was amazing,” Thomson said in describing the flight.
On Oct. 15, to celebrate his 88th birthday, Thomson hitched a ride in Cowden Ward Jr.’s P-51 that’s part of the Freedom Flyers veteran rides program. Though Thomson has flown in everything from a Piper Cub to a B52 bomber, the P-51 is at the top of his list of favorites. The fighter plane quickly earned a reputation as one of the best when it entered combat over the European skies during World War II.
As part of its mission, Freedom Flyers offers World War II veterans an opportunity to take to the skies in either the P-51 or its AT-6. Thomson started out wanting to fly in another warbird but found himself in the Freedom Flyers’ hangar looking at the P-51 Mustang.
“I just wanted to fly in it,” he said of his reason for picking the Mustang.
Thomson’s love affair with airplanes and aviation started about 80 years ago when, as a child, he would fashion model planes by hand cutting the wooden pieces. Then, he’d layer tissue-like paper across the fuselage and wings for a finished plane.
“My first one was a Fokker D8,” Thomson said about his start in model building.
Eventually, his love of aviation led to a career as an aeronautical engineer after his World War II service. While working at Boeing for more than four decades, Thomson served in numerous capacities, including inflight refueling and crash investigations.
The flight in the P-51 Mustang, called “Pecos Bill,” highlights a lifelong love of aviation. Cowden took Thomson over the Highland Lakes on a beautiful, cloudless day in a trip that lasted less than an hour. The memory, however, will remain for the rest of his life.
“How’s that for my 55th airplane,” Thomson said with a boyish grin.
Go to www.freedom-flyers.org for more information on the organization and how to help support the World War II veterans flights.
daniel@thepicayune.com