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| Fog | Mar '09 |
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| By Cliff Robertson |
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I think, in my half-baked philosophical mind, that one of nature's gifts is fog. Fog has been given a bad rap. It's pictured as gloom and doom and hazardous to your health. I think fog should be looked at from another side, a bright side if you will. A bright side of fog? How could that be? Well .
Why not think of it as a soft, velvety scrim? As nature's blanket—cottony, reassuring and obscuring so many of life's hard objects. Some say it is even good for the skin, evidence in the English ladies' complexions. Truth be known, fog is a reassuring, comforting protection; temporary, but necessary. Too many of life's realities are hard-edged— a little fog now and then is a comforter.
It indeed was perfect for the late Claude Rains and Humphrey Bogart as they walked towards the airport runway in the closing scene of "Casablanca." I would as a young pilot, however, worry that they were serious about getting into that Fokker transport, its waiting engines idling prior to takeoff. I wanted to check the pilot's credentials and sanity, for that was 1940 and not a good time to fly in fog. It begs the question, "Is any time a good time to fly in fog?"
There are some who would quibble and say, "What kind of fog?" As far as this pilot is concerned, just about any kind of fog (even light wisps) can be deadly, particularly on runways. So pilot beware—fog is like a bewitching, seductive woman. It can be pretty, even beautiful. It can also catch you with your britches down. "Lady Fog" is not a friend.
To this day, every time I see that classic movie "Casablanca" ending with Claude and Humphrey walking blissfully in the fog, I say:
"Hey fellas, not to interrupt your conversation, but is this trip really necessary? I mean really Humphrey, look at the lady you are leaving, Ingrid Bergman (no slouch she), and all Paul Henri can do is light two cigarettes at a time. And as for the Fokker—well, why not wait for the next Ford TriMotor and the vanishing fog?"
And besides . we're in a New Year. We can start off by not being impulsive and in a hurry, but enjoy the little we may have left after Christmas. We can praise the Lord for what we do have and think positively. After all, tomorrow is a new day!"
Academy Award and Emmy Award winning screen star Cliff Robertson has owned and flown a wide array of aircraft, including a Spitfire MK IX, a Messerschmitt Me 108, a French aerobatic Stampe SV4 biplane, a Grob Astir glider (in which he still holds a distance record) and a Beech Baron 58. A holder of single, multi, instrument and commercial licenses, as well as balloon, the pilot of many thousands of hours has accumulated many aviation awards, including EAA's highest Eagle award and the AOPA Sharples Award. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame, and the American Veteran Association has honored him as Veteran of the Year. His columns will appear in his soon-to-be-published book. For more information, visit www.cliffrobertson.info.
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