Jumpseat Rider

My good friend John Mullis sent the following note: 

Your picture of Brother Baker's ancestor with the license signed by Orville Wright reminded me of something that happened to me at Braniff.   This was in the pre-TSA and pre-FAA intense scrutiny days, so what happened  next would be a serious anomaly today.  A very senior couple came aboard one of my flights and asked if she could come in to the 727 cockpit.  Of course we invited her in and then she asked if her husband could come up because he was a pilot.  Of course again.  He was in his late 80's, a diminutive man no more than 5'7".  He looked around just grinning and we all chatted for a while about his flying years.  He said he still had his license and he proceeded to take it out.  It was very old, kind of fading to brown but intact.  He handed it to me and I couldn't believe what I was seeing...his was signed by Orville Wright, in 1920 something.  The captain asked my why my mouth was hanging open and so I showed him the license.  Ed Leviker was the captain and he told me "John, close the door", which I did.  He then asked the man if he would like to ride in the cockpit with us from Kansas City to Dallas.  The man was so elated he could hardly stand it.  We strapped him in behind Ed, briefed him, and off he went.  Ed was as delighted to have him in the cockpit as the old man was, heck, we all were, and both of them grinned ear to ear all the way to Dallas.  It was a neat experience and I often thought about how good it was that Ed risked his neck to allow the old man to ride with us.  It was one of my most memorable 727 trips....

John

John is retiring from FedEx this month.  I know his colleagues will miss flying with him.

November 1972, John's first trip to "The Boat."  USS Lexington, Gulf of Mexico, near Pensacola, Florida.