bob 's discount furniture is an american regional chain of privately owned furniture stores in the northeast , mid-atlantic & midwestern united states .

bob 's discount furniture started in connecticut and its corporate headquarters are in manchester , ct .

the company has stores located in maine , new hampshire , massachusetts , connecticut , rhode island , new york , new jersey , maryland , virginia , pennsylvania , delaware , and illinois .

in fall 2016 , three new stores opened – wharton , nj , hagerstown , md & riverdale , ny . – bringing the total number of bob ’s discount furniture stores to 76 .

bob 's discount furniture is continuing to expand in 2017 , with new stores coming to the chicago & st. louis markets .

the company was founded in 1991 with its first store in newington , connecticut .

bob 's discount furniture is based in manchester , connecticut and is ranked 14th among u.s. furniture stores .

in addition to being known for its distinctive advertisements , the company is also known for offering amenities at many of its stores , which may include an in-store cafe with complimentary refreshments .

many of the stores have a back room where people can get items that are considered imperfect ; this area is called the " outlet " .

bob 's is also a main sponsor for several professional sports teams ; including the washington redskins , new england patriots , pittsburgh steelers , and new york giants .

in recent years , nfl players like chandler jones ( patriots ) and rashad jennings ( giants ) have had living room sets named after them .

bob ' s discount furniture

bob ' s discount furniture <EOT> bob ' s discount furniture added a new photo . - bob ' s discount furniture | facebook

comment from bob ' s discount f . of bob ' s discount furniture business owner

bob ' s discount furniture : bob ' s discount furniture opening two st . louis area stores thursday

bob’s discount furniture announced the grand prize winners of its 2015 bob’s discount furniture $ 250 , 000 high school heroes scholarship program .

bob’s discount furniture is a leading deep value furniture retailer in the northeast us .

bob ' s discount furniture : bob ' s upping footprint to 12 stores in s . calif .

cathy & sharon from bob ' s outreach team . . . - bob ' s discount furniture

glassdoor has 280 bob ' s discount furniture reviews submitted anonymously by bob ' s discount furniture employees . read employee reviews and ratings on glassdoor to decide if bob ' s discount furniture is right for you .

bob ' s discount furniture ' s president & ceo , michael skirvin , currently has an approval rating of 81 % . bob ' s discount furniture ' s primary competitors are

bob ' s discount furniture helps fulfill girl’s basement makeover wish in university park , md .

bob’s discount furniture awards $ 250 , 000 in scholarships to 64 u . s . students

bob ' s discount furniture is an online marketplace to purchase for bedroom , office and dining room furniture and accessories . bob ' s discount furniture was founded in 1991 . bob ' s discount furniture ' s headquarters is located in manchester , connecticut , u . . .

bob ' s discount furniture : bob ' s signs leases for 6 new l . a . - area stores

owler has collected 13 screenshots of bob ' s discount furniture ' s website since may 2014 . the latest bob ' s discount furniture website design screenshot was captured in sep 2017 .

questions ? get answers from the bob ' s discount furniture staff and other customers .

raymour & flanigan furniture is seen as one of bob ' s discount furniture ' s top competitors . raymour & flanigan furniture ' s headquarters is in liverpool , new york , and was founded in 1946 . like bob ' s discount furniture , raymour & flanigan furniture also works within the home furnishing retail industry . raymour & flanigan furniture generates 21 % of bob ' s discount furniture ' s revenue .

bob ' s discount furniture is an online marketplace to purchase for bedroom , office and dining room furniture and accessories . bob ' s discount furniture is a private company . michael skirvin is the president & ceo of bob ' s discount furniture and has an approval rating of 81 from owler members . bob ' s discount furniture ' s top competitor is art van , led by ronald boire , who is their president & ceo . bob ' s discount furniture has 493 followers on owler .

press release : bob ' s discount furniture : bob ' s discount furniture leases 750 , 000 square - foot facility in shorewood , ill . , to support chicago - area expansion

for more information about bob’s discount furniture and its ongoing charitable programs , please visit urltoken .

the chain also supports its communities through two nonprofit entities : bob ' s discount furniture charitable foundation and bob ' s outreach .

i am committed to supporting communities where our stores are located through bob’s discount furniture charitable foundation and bob ' s outreach program .

bob’s discount furniture awards $ 250 , 000 in scholarships to 64 u . s . students | home accents today

bob ' s discount furniture currently has 4 , 740 followers on twitter . as of february 2015 bob ' s discount furniture had 2 , 041 followers . that ' s a 132 percent increase in 2 years

bob ' s discount furniture currently has 110 , 241 fans on facebook . as of february 2015 bob ' s discount furniture had 16 , 620 fans . that ' s a 563 percent increase in 3 years

café collections for a cause . . . - bob ' s discount furniture office photo | glassdoor

arhaus has been one of bob ' s discount furniture ' s top competitors . arhaus was founded in 1986 , and its headquarters is in hudson , ohio . like bob ' s discount furniture , arhaus also works within the home furnishing retail field . arhaus has 227 more employees than bob ' s discount furniture .

art van is bob ' s discount furniture ' s top competitor . art van is headquartered in warren , michigan , and was founded in 1959 . like bob ' s discount furniture , art van also operates in the home furnishing retail field . art van generates 105 % the revenue of bob ' s discount furniture .

cathy poulin , bob ' s discount furniture . . . - the big book club getaway | فيسبوك

bob ' s discount furniture helps fulfill bedroom makeover wish for boy in bronx , n . y .

bob’s discount furniture donates furnishings n . y . family impacted by hurricane sandy and life - threatening illness

bob ' s discount furniture plans to open six new stores in the los angeles market . the post bob ' s to en . . .

bob ' s discount furniture , a top 100 furniture retailer based in manchester , conn . , has announced the . . .

press release : bob ' s discount furniture : bob ' s discount furniture awards $ 25 , 000 to gov . john fairfield elementary school of saco , maine in ninth annual ' celebrate the arts ' contest

industry veteran and technology specialist scott perry has joined bob ' s discount furniture as vice pr . . .

bob ' s discount furniture posted a video " nasa invented memory foam , but bob brought it down to earth . " on youtube

bob ' s discount furniture will open five more southern california stores by labor day weekend , pushing . . .

top 100 retailer bob ' s discount furniture this week celebrated the opening of its new headquarters an . . .

manchester , conn . — bob’s discount furniture is pulling the trigger on yet another midwestern market — st . louis .

the new building will allow bob’s discount furniture to consolidate management and administrative functions of the business from across other states .

at bob’s discount furniture , we have fun , we love what we do and it shows in our expansive growth ! bob’s truly values the contributions of . . .

bob ' s discount furniture ' s revenue is the second highest among it ' s top 10 competitors . the top 10 competitors average $ 71 . 8m .

commercial real estate firm cbre recently announced bob ' s discount furniture , the co - anchor of the gr . . .

bob ' s discount furniture has nailed down the leases on its first six los angeles - area stores opening . . .

bob ' s discount furniture has employees and is the first highest among it ' s top 10 competitors . the top 10 competitors average 114 .

update : bob ' s heading to st . louis next year | furniture today

in q2 , bob’s discount furniture customers donated $ 30 , 000 to the café collections , and bob’s outreach team more than matched the funds raised to provide the non - profit with $ 100 , 000 . this is the second year bob’s café collections has benefited autism speaks . in 2014 , bob’s discount furniture donated $ 50 , 000 to the organization .

special olympics honored bob’s discount furniture and presented three of its principals with president’s awards for their outstanding support of the organization during a ceremony on january 16th at bob’s corporate headquarters in manchester ( ct ) .

bobs furniture sells cheap quality furniture . they have you buy a warranty on the furniture and when…

one of connecticut’s best known retailers — bob’s discount furniture — has secured a deal with state that should keep the business in connecticut for the foreseeable future .

if you live in any of the 15 states where bob ' s discount furniture operates , you ' re probably familiar . . .

bob’s discount furniture , the leading furniture retailer dedicated to untouchable values , today announced the opening of its new headquarters and corporate campus on tolland turnpike in manchester , ct .

bob’s discount furniture today announced that its 2017 golf outing raised $ 628 , 000 for local connecticut children’s charities . the money will benefit organizations carefully selected by bob’s discount furniture’s charitable foundation , including the nutmeg big brothers big sisters , family & children’s aid , connecticut children’s medical center , and camp rising sun , a camp for children who have been diagnosed with cancer .

new york city fc has partnered with bob’s discount furniture , the leading furniture retailer dedicated to untouchable value , making bob’s the official furniture store of the club . as part of the partnership , bob’s will help fans digitally engage with the club they love by sponsoring a fan - favorite social media series , now called the “nycfc play of the month presented by bob’s discount furniture . ” bob’s will also receive stadium assets for all locally broadcast regular season home matches and have a presence on the club’s website and digital newsletter . nycfc adds to bob’s robust list of professional team official sponsorships .

manchester , conn . , may 21 , 2015 / prnewswire / - - bob ' s discount furniture today announced the opening . . .

bob’s discount furniture awards $ 25 , 000 to gov . john fairfield elementary school of saco , maine in ninth annual ‘celebrate the arts’ contest

bob’s discount furniture today announced that its 2016 golf outing raised over $ 600 , 000 for local connecticut children’s charities . the money will benefit organizations carefully selected by bob’s discount furniture’s charitable foundation , including the nutmeg big brothers big sisters , family & children’s aid , connecticut children’s medical center , and camp rising sun , a camp for children who have been diagnosed with cancer .

to find out more about bob’s charitable giving visit urltoken , bob ' s outreach and visit us on facebook .

visit bob ' s discount furniture in glendale , ny to shop quality furniture at untouchable values . browse the showroom for affordable bedroom sets , living room sets , dining room …

“bob’s discount furniture is a great connecticut story and obviously a household name , ” malloy said in a statement . “we’re committed to helping our small businesses expand in to large ones . bob’s is committed to connecticut , and connecticut is committed to bob’s . ”

bob ' s discount furniture customers donate thousands of dollars each year through the café collections for a cause program . each quarter , one designated nonprofit is the recipient of all funds donated by bob ' s discount furniture customers that is matched by the bob ' s outreach team . since its inception in 2014 , bob ' s café collections has donated close to $ 500 , 000 to nonprofit organizations .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture says contest submissions are piling in f . . .

although bob’s discount furniture was founded in newington 25 years ago , it is currently owned by the boston - based private equity firm bain capital .

bob’s discount furniture operates 61 furniture stores throughout new england , delaware , maryland , new jersey , new york , pennsylvania and virginia . the manchester , conn . - based company is the 14th - largest u . s . furniture chain .

visit bob ' s discount furniture in new york , ny to shop quality furniture at untouchable values . browse the showroom for affordable bedroom sets , living room sets , dining room …

manchester , conn . , july 21 , 2014 — bob ' s discount furniture and planned furniture promotions announced today that their 2014 golf outing raised $ 441 , 000 for charities .

farmington , conn . , july 23 , 2015 – bob’s discount furniture today announced that its 2015 golf outing raised $ 452 , 000 for children’s charities . the money will benefit organizations carefully selected by bob’s discount furniture’s charitable foundation , including the nutmeg big brothers big sisters , family & children’s aid , connecticut children’s medical center , and camp rising sun , a camp for over 120 children battling cancer .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture and the american red cross teamed up wit . . .

bob ' s discount furniture celebrates new store opening in freehold , n . j . by donating $ 14 , 000 to local schools and community organizations

bob’s discount furniture celebrates the grand opening of two new d . c . - area stores by donating more than $ 25 , 000 to local schools

the top 10 competitors in bob ' s discount furniture ' s competitive set are art van , raymour & flanigan furniture , arhaus , ethan allen , ruby - gordon furniture , hhg , jordan ' s furniture , mcguire furniture company , goodmans and american freight . together they have raised over 30 . 0m between their estimated 12 . 8k employees .

the westchester news 914 237 - 8631 urltoken bob ' s discount furniture stores has hundreds of complaints against them all over the internet , and we went into the store in yonkers , new york and found out that bob ' s discount furniture store is a dangerous place to shop . watch the video !

headquartered in manchester , connecticut , bob’s discount furniture provides a wide variety of quality furnishings , including living room furniture , bedroom furniture , dining room furniture , mattresses / foundations and home accents , at value prices . with 47 stores located throughout northeast and mid - atlantic - and opening in the philadelphia area in february 2014 - bob’s discount furniture has grown dramatically over the last 10 years by delivering unsurpassed value to customers .

manchester , conn . — industry veteran and bob ' s discount furniture chairman stan adelstein retired sunday after more than 20 years with the top 100 company .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture today announced it will contribute $ 30 , 0 . . .

bob’s discount furniture awards $ 25 , 000 to gov . john fairfield elementary school of saco , maine in ninth annual ‘celebrate the arts’ contest | business wire

the annual event was started 27 years ago by planned furniture promotions , a leading home furnishings sales promotion company founded by rosenberg . bob ' s discount furniture became an event partner four years later in 1991 , when kaufman and rosenberg started bob ' s .

“i don’t want anyone to say , ‘i work at bob’s discount furniture , but i’ve never met bob , ' ” he said . “we run it like a small , family business . ”

bob ' s discount furniture llc has received 4 . 57 out of 5 stars based on 1 , 070 customer reviews and a bbb rating of a + .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture is donating $ 40 , 000 this month to sponso . . .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture has leased a 751 , 966 square - foot warehou . . .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture today announced it is donating $ 45 , 000 t . . .

farmington , conn . – july 18 , 2017 – bob’s discount furniture and planned furniture promotions ( pfp ) today announced that their 2017 golf outing raised $ 628 , 000 for local connecticut children’s charities . the money will benefit organizations carefully selected by bob’s discount furniture’s charitable foundation and pfp , including the nutmeg big brothers big sisters , family & children’s aid , connecticut children’s medical center , and camp rising sun , a camp for children who have been diagnosed with cancer .

farmington , conn . – july 22 , 2016 – bob’s discount furniture and planned furniture promotions ( pfp ) today announced that their 2016 golf outing raised over $ 600 , 000 for local connecticut children’s charities . the money will benefit organizations carefully selected by bob’s discount furniture’s charitable foundation and pfp , including the nutmeg big brothers big sisters , family & children’s aid , connecticut children’s medical center , and camp rising sun , a camp for children who have been diagnosed with cancer .

( l - r ) harry van trees , westfield high school vice - principal , cathy poulin , bob ' s discount furniture public relations director , david reimschussel , westfield high school choir director , and maurice mckisset , bob ' s discount furniture falls church sales manager are joined by members of the westfield high school choir .

pictured left to right : genevieve piturro , pajama program executive director , and cathy poulin , bob ' s discount furniture outreach director , with children in pajama program .

manchester , conn . - - ( business wire ) - - bob ' s discount furniture today presented a $ 25 , 000 check to gov . . . .

manchester , conn . — bob’s discount furniture is expanding and revamping its marketing department and has named industry veteran steve nesle as chief marketing officer to head the group .

manchester , conn . — bob ' s discount furniture has agreed to sell a majority stake in the company to equity firm bain capital , the companies announced today .

bob’s discount furniture and the garde arts center give conn . and r . i . kids a chance to win $ 750 – and a performance for their entire class

glassdoor office photos give you an inside look at employers , such as bob ' s discount furniture . this is bob ' s discount furniture office photo was submitted anonymously . shown in this photo : café collections for a cause charity of 2016 ! stop by my café , grab some yummy treats and leave a donation for an amazing cause !

bob ' s discount furniture today announced a new alliance with make - a - wish to help children with life - threatening medical conditions . the sponsorship kicks off in april , and the company will donate $ 45 , 000 in gift cards to help grant wishes to children in all nine states in which bob ' s discount furniture serves .

manchester , conn . – october 3 , 2012 – bob’s discount furniture is helping grant the wishes of children with life - threatening medical conditions throughout the northeast including 12 - year - old rehema’s wish for a magical bedroom makeover at her home in dorchester , massachusetts . bob’s discount furniture assisted make - a - wish massachusetts and rhode island in granting the bedroom makeover for rehema , who is being treated for a life - threatening blood disorder . rehema’s wish is just one example of the continued dedication bob’s discount furniture has for make - a - wish and its mission .

one of the biggest decisions that anyone will make in life is whether to work for themselves—or work for someone else , said uconn business school alumnus bob kaufman ’74 , founder and president emeritus of bob’s discount furniture .

it’s been months since state officials , prompted by a urltoken investigation and complaint last fall , requested that bob’s discount furniture make changes to the advertising of its “interest free” financing , which has left furniture shoppers with surprising bills . but consumers are still not getting the full story from bob’s sales staff and showroom signs .

bob ' s discount furniture has announced the grand prize winner of its 2015 bob ' s discount furniture $ 250 , 000 high school heroes scholarship program with the american red cross . the grand prize was awarded to windham technical high school for the highest number of units collected at their high school blood drives during the 2014 - 15 school year .

from october to december , bob ' s discount furniture customers from its 64 stores donated a total of $ 30 , 000 to the café collections , which the bob ' s outreach team matched to provide pajama program with $ 60 , 000 .

( l - r ) susan bell , windsor locks middle school assistant principal , sharon valley , bob ' s discount furniture , jalen croutch , windsor locks middle school student .

bob ' s discount furniture recently presented a $ 60 , 000 check to save the children as part of its café collections for a cause initiative . the funds will support save the children ' s early learning campaign to ensure that children in need in the u . s . have access to educational programs , books and resources otherwise unavailable to them . pictured ( from left ) are cathy poulin , spokeswoman and public relations director , bob ' s discount furniture ; jennifer kendra , director of impact marketing and partnership development , save the children ; and bob kaufman , co - founder and president emeritus , bob ' s discount furniture .

the winning school was randomly selected from nearly 4 , 000 entries – the largest number in the contest’s history – submitted from across the 11 states where bob’s discount furniture operates . this year’s winning entry came from fairfield school parent carrie green .

manchester , conn . – april 25 , 2014 – bob’s discount furniture today announced it will contribute $ 14 , 000 to local charities and schools to celebrate the may 22 grand opening of its newest discount furniture store , located in freehold , n . j . the new store is the second bob’s store to open in new jersey this year and the eighth bob’s location in the state , continuing the company’s expansion throughout the east coast and mid - atlantic regions .

the company has 69 stores in 12 states , having opened five stores in the chicago - area in february . bob’s discount furniture has 9 connecticut locations , including one in orange .

as part of bob ' s discount furniture ' s outreach program , cathy poulin , bob ' s discount furniture ' s public relations / outreach director , had the pleasure of reading to students at nashua ' s fairhaven elementary school on march 2 in observance of read across america day . fairhaven elementary student , andy almonte , personally invited cathy to read to the school as part of fairhaven elementary school’s read across america day ' s festivities . read across america day promotes reading , particularly for children and young adults .

manchester , conn . , july 21 , 2014 — bob ' s discount furniture and planned furniture promotions announced today that their 2014 golf outing raised $ 441 , 000 for charities . the money will benefit a number of organizations carefully selected by bob’s discount furniture charitable foundation , including camp rising sun , cardinal cushing centers , connecticut children ' s medical center , family & children ' s aid , prudence crandall center , the jimmy fund and nutmeg big brothers big sisters .

mike skirvin , the company’s president and chief executive officer , said bob’s discount furniture has become successful through a corporate culture that “is deeply rooted in educational advancement , community involvement and dedication to its work force . ”

manchester — bob’s discount furniture will open its first stores on the west coast next week , ceo michael skirvin said wednesday . skirvin said the chain will open six stores in the los angeles area on feb . 15 . bob’s also has leased . . .

bob ' s discount furniture is renovating a former sport ' s authority building at 2700 n . plainfield road near the louis joliet mall , according to wjol . owners ' opening day sights are reportedly set on may .

what goes up must come down . thankfully , bob ' s has a great selection of comfy recliners and reclining furniture .

" it ' s been an honor being stan ' s partner for the past 20 years and seeing a master at work , " bob ' s co - founder and president bob kaufman said in a statement . " stan has been a driving force in building bob ' s into one of the country ' s premiere furniture retailers . "

just wanna give a heads up to anyone who might want to spend their hard earned money on bob ' s discount furniture . my suggestion , unfortunately is to go somewhere else . i recently found a great apartment and decided i wanted to get all new furniture . i walked into bob ' s . . .

residents of a bridgeport safe house , which provides shelter and support to victims of domestic violence , have been treated to a home makeover thanks to a donation from bob’s discount furniture and its charitable foundation . kathie’s . . .

during the opening ceremony , bob’s discount furniture presented the special olympics of massachusetts a check for $ 60 , 000 – money donated by the company and its customers – to fund the event .

bob’s discount furniture outreach director cathy poulin joins pajama program founder genevieve piturro dressed up as cat in the hat to read to children and present the organization with a $ 60 , 000 check .

touting unsurpassed value , honesty and integrity bob ' s discount furniture offers furniture and bedding from 83 showrooms in 15 states in the northeast , mid - atlantic and midwest u . s . but each location offers more than just a place to sit , lounge or sleep .

“we are proud of all the students that participated in the scholarship program this year and gave back to their communities by hosting blood drives to help patients in need , ” said bob kaufman , president emeritus and co - founder of bob’s discount furniture . “bob’s discount furniture is thrilled to provide scholarships to students in connecticut , massachusetts , new jersey , and new york as a way to thank them for their participation and leadership . ”

bob’s discount furniture today announced it will contribute more than $ 50 , 000 to 18 schools to celebrate the feb . 13 grand opening of its three newest discount furniture stores . the new stores – the first bob’s locations in the greater philadelphia area – reflect the company’s continued commitment to serving residents throughout the east coast and mid - atlantic regions , and are expected to add hundreds of new jobs to the local economy .

bob’s discount furniture , which celebrates its 25 th anniversary this year , provides a wide variety of high quality furniture , mattresses , and home accents at attractive prices . a compelling “everyday low price” business model , unique and enjoyable store experience , and customer - focused culture has made bob’s discount furniture the 14 th - largest player in the furniture retail industry . the company has achieved tremendous success entering new markets , including philadelphia in 2014 , pittsburgh in 2015 , and chicago in 2016 .

bob ' s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in rhode island in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

established in 1991 , the furniture giant bob’s discount furniture now sells more than $ 1 . 1 billion in furniture annually , with stores in the northeast , midwest and mid - atlantic . it is ranked 14th among u . s . furniture retailers . kaufman remains an active executive and the third - largest shareholder in the company , which is now owned by bain capital .

the manchester , conn . - based bob ' s is ranked no . 15 on furniture / today ' s top 100 with estimated 2011 furniture , bedding and accessories sales of $ 638 . 8 million .

bob ' s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to 14 schools in virginia and maryland in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

manchester , conn . – nov . 16 , 2016 – in celebration of the upcoming holidays , bob’s discount furniture today announced a donation of $ 86 , 000 to food pantries and hunger - relief programs within its markets throughout the northeast , mid - atlantic and midwest . an organization near each of the 76 bob’s discount furniture stores , three distribution centers and seven future store locations will receive a $ 1 , 000 donation from the furniture retailer .

this year , bob’s discount furniture will sponsor autism speaks’ signature fundraising event , autism speaks walk , in eleven different cities . bob’s employees will participate in each walk including baltimore , boston , chicago , long island , philadelphia , pittsburgh , washington d . c . and four walks throughout new jersey . in addition , bob’s discount furniture will continue to donate funds to autism speaks through its café collections program , matching 100 % of customer donations across all stores from april through june .

manchester , conn . – march 15 , 2016 – bob’s discount furniture , the leading furniture retailer dedicated to untouchable value , today announced it has expanded its partnership with autism speaks , the world’s leading autism science and advocacy organization . over the past three years , bob’s discount furniture has contributed $ 200 , 000 to autism speaks through sponsorships , café collections for a cause , and gift card donations . this year the company has already pledged over $ 120 , 000 to the organization .

manchester , conn . – march 17 , 2016 – bob’s discount furniture , the leading furniture retailer dedicated to untouchable value , today announced it has expanded its partnership with autism speaks , the world’s leading autism science and advocacy organization . over the past three years , bob’s discount furniture has contributed $ 200 , 000 to autism speaks through sponsorships , café collections for a cause , and gift card donations . this year the company has already pledged over $ 120 , 000 to the organization .

bob’s discount furniture donates millions to charity each year , culled from the 150 requests it receives each week . an annual golf outing and dinner , last summer , netted $ 454 , 000 for charity .

" we are excited to partner with ted english and the great management team at bob’s discount furniture to support continued growth in this dynamic business , ” said tricia patrick , a principal at bain capital . “we believe the company’s quality furniture at deep value fills an important need in the market today , and along with the authenticity of the bob ' s brand , should drive sustainable growth for years to come . we look forward to supporting the management team in executing their plan to grow and offer more customers the opportunity to shop at bob ' s discount furniture . "

bob kaufman , the founder and face of bob ' s discount furniture , will remain president emeritus of the chain after a majority stake in the company is sold to bain capital , the boston - based private equity firm where mitt romney once worked .

bob’s discount furniture today announced that it is donating $ 40 , 000 to the special olympics in support of athletes training across the mid - atlantic and new england region , a $ 10 , 000 increase from bob’s donation in 2014 . half of this year’s contribution to special olympics comes from the company’s bob’s outreach program , which supports schools and children - related charities , while the other half is made possible by customer contributions to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee , ice cream , cookies and candy ) to all bob’s shoppers .

bob ' s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in massachusetts in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by money collected in donation jars , which are located in each store’s café .

" we are proud of all the students that participated in the scholarship program this year and gave back to their communities by hosting blood drives to help patients in need , " said bob kaufman , president emeritus and co - founder of bob ' s discount furniture . " bob ' s discount furniture is thrilled to provide scholarships to students in connecticut , massachusetts , new jersey and new york as a way to thank them for their participation and leadership . "

" we are excited to partner with ted english and the great management team at bob’s discount furniture to support continued growth in this dynamic business , ” said tricia patrick , a principal at bain capital private equity . “we believe the company’s quality furniture at deep value fills an important need in the market today , and along with the authenticity of the bob ' s brand , should drive sustainable growth for years to come . we look forward to supporting the management team in executing their plan to grow and offer more customers the opportunity to shop at bob ' s discount furniture . "

about bob ' s discount furniture bob ' s discount furniture provides a wide variety of quality furnishings - including living room furniture , bedroom furniture , dining room furniture , office furniture and home accents - at everyday low prices . the stores also offer a unique and enjoyable shopping experience featuring cafes in each store with free gourmet coffee , ice cream , cookies and candy . since 1991 , bob ' s has built strong customer loyalty by offering the highest - value home furnishings at the lowest possible prices . with 61 furniture stores located throughout new england , delaware , maryland , new jersey , new york , pennsylvania and virginia , the manchester , conn . - based company has become the 14th - largest u . s . furniture chain . bob ' s is committed to supporting communities where its stores are located through a variety of charitable giving efforts . bob ' s discount furniture charitable foundation has anchored the company ' s philanthropic work for more than 15 years . in addition , the bob ' s outreach program was created as a separate entity to help schools and children - related charities . the company donates more than $ 2 million to charities through these programs each year . for more information on bob ' s charitable programs , visit urltoken , and follow us on twitter @ mybobs and @ mybobs _ charity and on facebook at urltoken .

bob’s discount furniture has partnered with alex’s lemonade stand , who will be recipients of our 3rd quarter collections for a cause . help us raise funds to impact research , raise awareness , support families and empower individuals to help cure childhood cancer . urltoken

bob’s discount furniture today kicked off its 10th annual celebrate the arts contest . from thursday , october 1 through saturday , october 31 , schools can enter to win a $ 25 , 000 cultural grant to support their arts programs . led by the bob’s discount furniture outreach team , the contest aims to generate awareness and support of fine arts and cultural programs to help maintain visual , creative , and performing arts in schools .

bob’s discount furniture’s customers donate thousands of dollars through the café collections for a cause program . each quarter , the bob’s outreach team selects a non - profit to be the recipient of all funds donated by its customers and matches 100 % of the donations . since its inception in 2014 , bob’s café collections has donated $ 330 , 000 to non - profit organizations . the q3 beneficiary will be save the children .

bob’s discount furniture provides a wide variety of quality furnishings – including living room furniture , bedroom furniture , dining room furniture , office furniture and home accents – at everyday low prices . the stores also offer a unique and enjoyable shopping experience featuring cafes in each store with free gourmet coffee , ice cream , cookies and candy . since 1991 , bob’s has built strong customer loyalty by offering the highest - value home furnishings at the lowest possible prices . with 47 stores located throughout new england , new jersey , new york , maryland and virginia , the manchester , conn . - based company has become the 16th - largest u . s . furniture chain . bob’s is committed to supporting communities where its stores are located through a variety of charitable giving efforts . bob’s discount furniture charitable foundation has anchored the company’s philanthropic work for more than 15 years . in addition , the bob’s outreach program was created as a separate entity to help schools and children - related charities . every year the company donates more than $ 100 , 000 to schools and more than $ 1 million to charities through these programs . to find out more about bob’s discount furniture , visit urltoken . for more information on bob’s charitable programs , visit urltoken , and follow us on twitter @ mybobs _ charity and on facebook at urltoken .

on november 11 , cathy poulin from bob ' s discount furniture delivered a $ 5 , 000 cultural arts grant as part of bob ' s " celebrate the arts " contest to a group of students from westfield high school at the bob ' s falls church location . the contest is designed to support and maintain dance , music and the arts in schools , with bob ' s awarding a total of $ 45 , 000 in cultural grants to nine deserving schools .

pictured in photo ( l to r ) : alec elbert , chief development & strategic officer , autism speaks ; jessica serrano - cortes , hartford walk chair , autism speaks ; alberto cortes , hartford walk chair , autism speaks ; adrian cortes , hartford walk chair , autism speaks ; cathy poulin , public relations and community outreach director , bob’s discount furniture ; richard mccormick , manchester , ct store manager , bob’s discount furniture .

founded in manchester in 1991 , bob ' s discount furniture now has 69 stores across 12 northeast and mid - atlantic states , and recently expanded into the midwest with five chicago - area store openings last month .

manchester , conn . – december 4 , 2012 – bob’s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in massachusetts in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

manchester , conn . – october 5 , 2012 – bob’s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in connecticut in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

in the years since , in equally distressing economic times , more stores have been opened and now they total a dozen in connecticut and two more in western massachusetts . last year , bob ' s discount furniture was rated as the 63d largest furniture company in the nation .

as part of deal , bob’s discount furniture is eligible for a $ 1 . 7 million grant to train employees and up to $ 11 million in tax credits through the urban and industrial sites reinvestment tax credit program .

bob ' s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in new york in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible through money collected in donation jars , which are located in each store ' s cafe .

bob ' s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in new jersey in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible through money collected in donation jars , which are located in each store ' s cafe .

manchester , conn . – january 9 , 2013 – bob’s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in new jersey in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

manchester , conn . – november 14 , 2012 – bob’s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in new york in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

manchester , conn . – september 6 , 2012 – bob’s discount furniture today announced that it will donate funds to seven schools in new jersey in support of arts and education programs . these funds are made possible by customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every bob’s store , which offer free refreshments ( including gourmet coffee and fresh - baked cookies ) to all bob’s shoppers .

bob’s discount furniture , the leading furniture retailer dedicated to untouchable value , today announced the opening of six new stores in the los angeles market . the furniture retailer will be cutting the ribbon on february 15 , 2018 at its new locations in baldwin park , huntington beach , la - mid - town , long beach , west hills and valencia . these six new stores will be bob’s first on the west coast .

“the bob’s discount furniture $ 250 , 000 high school heroes scholarship program helps the red cross make a difference in the lives of patients and empowers high school students to take a leadership role , ” said donna m . morrissey , director of national partnerships for the red cross biomedical services . . “we are grateful to bob’s discount furniture for their work in increasing blood donations from high school blood drives and their support of the red cross . ”

bob kaufman , the founder of bob ' s discount furniture , shares his unique approach to becoming an industry disruptor before that concept was cool . kaufman became an industry disruptor after what turned out to be a happy motorcycle accident . his doctor recommended that he get a waterbed , so he set out to the furniture stores and was bombarded with shady pricing and gimmicks . eventually , he couldn’t take it anymore and went on to found bob’s discount furniture , providing customers with everyday low prices , gimmick - free . bob’s discount furniture has over 100 locations across the united states and online at www . mybobs . com . headquartered in manchester , connecticut , bob ' s has been in business for over 26 years and has long - standing relationships with numerous manufacturers to provide stylish pieces so you can furnish your living room , dining room , bedroom , and entire home with the look you want for less . while customers are shopping they can enjoy the on the house bob’s cafe that has ice cream , sweet treats and gourmet coffee . in the cafe of each store is also a life - size statue of little bob that collects donations from customers . each quarter , bob’s matches the thousands of dollars collected and gives it directly to a chosen non - profit . this year , bob’s selected the special olympics , autism speaks , alex’s lemonade stand foundation , and pajama program to be the recipients of the cafe collection donations . through the bob’s discount furniture charitable foundation and bob’s outreach , the company also supports their communities by providing $ 2 . 75 million yearly to hundreds of nonprofits . follow along with our journey and click subscribe above ! can ' t get enough of bob ' s discount furniture and little bob ? follow us on our socials below ! urltoken urltoken urltoken urltoken % . . . show less

the money will benefit a number of organizations carefully selected by bob ' s discount furniture charitable foundation , including camp rising sun , cardinal cushing centers , connecticut children ' s medical center , family & children ' s aid , prudence crandall center , the jimmy fund and nutmeg big brothers big sisters .

bob ' s discount furniture and the red cross recognized eight outstanding high school seniors at windham technical high school who each made exceptional contributions to their schools ' volunteer blood donor programs . the students were honored during the school ' s awards ceremony on june 17 .

cathy poulin , public relations director at bob’s discount furniture , and dr . kathy fallon , founder of heavenly productions foundation , delivered “heavenly skies & lullabies” books and cds to area kids on april 28 . the book and cd includes bedtime melodies and lullabies , aimed at helping parents and caregivers create a peaceful and relaxing environment for their children . the donation is part of bob’s discount furniture’s random act of kindness program , which focuses on providing aid to schools and children - centered services .

“mike’s elevation to ceo is an exciting milestone for bob’s discount furniture , ” said tricia patrick of bain capital private equity , who has served as a director at the company since the firm’s investment in 2014 . “he has been instrumental to the success of the business during his tenure here . his strong leadership , deep retail expertise , and relentless focus on bringing great values to furniture consumers make him the ideal leader for this next phase of growth at bob’s discount furniture . we would also like to express our deepest admiration and gratitude to ted for his vital contributions over the last 10 years to bob’s discount furniture , which would not be the business it is today without his leadership . the board of directors is excited to continue to partner with these two very experienced and committed executives in their new roles . ”

bob’s discount furniture provides a wide variety of quality furnishings – including living room furniture , bedroom furniture , dining room furniture , office furniture and home accents – at everyday low prices . the stores also offer a unique and enjoyable shopping experience featuring cafes in each store with free gourmet coffee , ice cream , cookies and candy . since 1991 , bob’s has built strong customer loyalty by offering the highest - value home furnishings at the lowest possible prices . with 61 furniture stores located throughout new england , delaware , maryland , new jersey , new york , pennsylvania and virginia , the manchester , conn . - based company has become the 14th - largest u . s . furniture chain . bob’s is committed to supporting communities where its stores are located through a variety of charitable giving efforts . bob’s discount furniture charitable foundation has anchored the company’s philanthropic work for more than 15 years . in addition , the bob’s outreach program was created as a separate entity to help schools and children - related charities . the company donates more than $ 2 million to charities through these programs each year . for more information on bob’s charitable programs , visit urltoken , and follow us on twitter @ mybobs and @ mybobs _ charity and on facebook at urltoken .

bob’s discount furniture and the garde arts center , southeastern connecticut’s non - profit performing arts center in downtown new london , today announced that 7 - year - old michael - anthony kline of middletown , conn . , is the winner of their 2013 online sleuths contest .

more than 450 participants took part in the july 18 event that included a round of golf at the tunxis plantation country club , along with an evening at the farmington club with dinner and an awards ceremony . the night featured both live and silent auctions , and bob’s discount furniture co - founders bob kaufman and gene rosenberg emceed the live auction . guests included bob’s employees ,

manchester , conn . – may 8 , 2013 – bob’s discount furniture today announced it will contribute a total of $ 27 , 000 to 16 new york city schools and two youth - focused charities to celebrate the may 23 grand opening of its newest discount furniture stores in brooklyn and the bronx . the new stores – the fourth and fifth new york city bob’s locations – reflect the company’s continued commitment to serving nyc residents , and are expected to add more than 130 jobs to the local economy .

we have bobs discount furniture stores around the world . swing by and say hello in person . we ' d be happy to help .

manchester , conn . – june 14 , 2017 – bob’s discount furniture , the leading furniture retailer dedicated to untouchable value , today announced it will continue its partnership with autism speaks to enhance lives and accelerate solutions for individuals with autism and their families . over the past four years , bob’s has contributed $ 350 , 000 to autism speaks through sponsorships , café collections for a cause , and gift card donations . bob’s has pledged over $ 125 , 000 this year alone .

bob’s discount furniture today announced the opening of four new stores in the greater pittsburgh and baltimore areas . bob’s will celebrate the four new locations by contributing over $ 50 , 000 to local charitable organizations and schools . additionally , bob’s announced the relocation of its seabrook , n . h . store . after opening more than a dozen new stores during the past two years , bob’s will now have 61 stores in 11 states across the east coast and mid - atlantic regions , with additional expansion planned for 2016 .

bob’s discount furniture also shares with bain capital a deep commitment to community involvement . bob’s discount stores supports the communities where its stores are located through a variety of charitable giving efforts to social service agencies , charities , group homes and community fundraisers , children’s charities , schools and community service groups . through the bain capital community partnership , the firm and its employees have provided time , expertise and financial resources to hundreds of nonprofit organizations around the world .


fletcher aviation corporation was an aircraft manufacturer founded by three brothers , wendell , frank , maurice fletcher , in pasadena , california in 1941 .

the initial aim of the company was to produce a wooden basic trainer aircraft ( the fbt-2 ) that wendell had designed , but despite brief interest by the army in the type to use as a target drone , nothing came of this aircraft .

after relocating to rosemead , california , later projects involved a family of related designs , including ( the fu-24 ) with 296 produced in new zealand as an agricultural aircraft with many still operating today .

during the korean war the company purchased rosemead airport from bob and jack heasley .

the roughly triangular property is located south of the 10 freeway , although the airport pre-dates the freeway .

the property extended from rosemead boulevard on the west to the rio hondo river basin on the south and east .

in 1953 , the same year the fu-24 debuted , they also produced a prototype amphibious vehicle known as the fletcher flair .

the vehicle was powered by a 4-cylinder porsche 356 drivetrain , modified to make it a four-wheel drive .

the company hoped to sell the vehicle to the us army but the vehicle performed poorly in the water and the army passed .

purchased by aj industries , it changed its name to flair aviation in 1960 , and produced aircraft fuelling equipment , including drop tanks and hose reels for inflight refuelling .

moved to el monte , california , its name was changed back to fletcher and then sargent fletcher in 1964 before abandoning aircraft manufacturing in 1966 , with rights to the fu-24 going to pacific aerospace .

fletcher aviation

fletcher aviation <EOT> fletcher aviation consulting is a premier international aviation , management , professional and technical consulting firm .

fletcher aviation lapel pin ; one piece stamped brass aircraft depicted with red and blue enamel fletcher aviation globe logo depicted on center disc ; embossed text " fletcher aviation " on wings of aircraft .

he brought one of his ideas developed during his lockheed time to fletcher aviation .

fletcher aviation’s first cougar – ga - 7 . 1977 dealer’s meeting in tulsa , oklahoma

according to bob falcon , the fletcher aviation plant “ was built in the early 1950s .

fletcher aviation located off the south ramp on runway 12 - 30 at houston hobby airport .

fletcher aviation – moved from next to the main terminal at hobby airport to the south ramp in about 1979 .

one was the fd - 25 fletcher defender , and based upon it the fu - 24 fletcher utility agwagon .

wendell fletcher , born in illinois in 1899 , had founded fletcher aviation with his brothers . wendell had worked as a design engineer for lockheed aircraft in burbank as they were moving into all - metal airplanes .

what scared him ? i don’t know . just another day in aviation . ”

the new owner was james most of most aviation co . , los angeles .

the latest development for the fletcher family is a new 200 acre residential airpark for aviation enthusiasts . this community is on the fabulous guadalupe river in the middle of the beautiful texas hill country ! fletcher airport will sport a 4500 foot runway and brings with it - - a long history in aviation !

in 1935 , fletcher opened the fletcher school of aviation in burbank to teach metal aircraft construction practices . out of this came a manual , the “standard aircraft construction manual , ” which was revised and reprinted for many years .

these other sites are non - aviation related but are a part of my history .

there was no aviation traffic that i can recall ; but the diner was in operation .

ross field was where aviation legend pancho barnes ( see barnes airfield ) learned to fly .

john thorp had traveled far and wide as an aeronautical engineer in the aviation back ground of california , with his associations with boeing and lockheed . he brought one of his ideas developed during his lockheed time to fletcher aviation . fletcher built two planes based upon thorps designs . one was the fd - 25 , fletcher , “defender , ” and based upon it the fu - 24 fletcher utility , “agwagon . ” the planes were very similar having the same engine cowling , wing , and empennage .

fletcher sold the agwagon to cable price corporation , a new zealand company . ”

llloyd continued , “at this same show fletcher showed its ' jeep ' offering .

maybelle fletcher in front of a tri - gear beechcraft d - 18 . 1965

fletcher has dealt exclusively with grumman aircraft and their parts for over 30 years .

this short - lived little general aviation airport was evidently established shortly after the end of ww2 .

these were ` drop tanks’ made by fletcher aviation corp . pictured here is the tank assembly line in pasadena , as shown in a hawkins photo from the pasadena museum of history collection .

just about the time fletcher bought the airport bill bought a beautiful beechcraft twin bonanza .

it depicted fletcher as a private airfield having a 2 , 500 ' unpaved runway .

eben & edna montgomery agreed to first flight lessons for their youngest , maybelle fletcher .

the owners were 2 brothers , maurie & stan fletcher . they were nice people . ”

my brother ernie & i saw hardwick opening fletcher’s back entrance gate to their factory property .

according to lloyd duke , “fletcher wanted to get into the aircraft business with a passion .

larry and maybelle fletcher work on hangar repair at the new business . nov 5 , 1945

in 1952 , fletcher left pasadena to buy a large site in rosemead , with an airstrip near the rio hondo . this was known as the rosemead airport or the fletcher airport .

also in 2004 maybelle was presented with the lloyd p . nolen lifetime achievement in aviation award by wings over houston . this award is given to individuals , organizations or companies dedicating their efforts to the advancement of aviation .

david fletcher takes some instruction from his mother maybelle in a cessna 310 . march 5 , 1959

as of 2006 , the sargent fletcher company was still located at the site of the former airport .

grandma montgomery with her two pilot son’s - in - law , larry fletcher and ernest maferd hunt .

fly - in breakfast on chincoteague island , va . 1948 . maybelle and larry fletcher watch landings .

it is said that fletcher was the largest user in the country of a certain type of aluminum sheet metal . fletcher also designed airplanes , including the fu - 24 , used for crop - dusting .

dick morris reported , “a november 1952 ad for j . l . most aviation , bellflower airport , 10451 e . center

the other was that crazy floating porsche jeep thing thing up top . called the fletcher flair , it was a response to an army desire for a new , floating jeep and wendell fletcher’s obsession with porsche .

after a move to houston , texas , in 1956 , maybelle founded and promoted the southwest flying club at what was at the time hull field in sugarland ( now sugarland regional airport ) . she took over a small flight school on that airport where she handled flight training for the va students and also started one of the early cessna pilot centers . and , fletcher aviation had begun ! it was here that larry and maybelle ' s son , david fletcher , soloed on his 16th birthday . this was the beginning of another career in aviation ! maybelle formally founded fletcher aviation in 1968 . in 1972 she relocated the business to hobby airport next to the west end of the main terminal .

lloyd recalled , “fletcher had a show & tell & flight demonstration that i was lucky enough to witness .

it depicted fletcher airport as having a paved northeast / southwest runway & a paved east / west taxiway .

located on the south ramp of hobby , the business included a flight school specializing in grumman american aircraft , parts department , maintenance department , aircraft storage , and fbo - chevron aviation fuel center , later an exxon avitat . they operated on 14 acres with over 140 , 000 square feet of hangar space . fletcher aviation was sold to wilson air center in 2005 .

the fletcher brothers had a habit of creating great things that just didn’t quite work out . they formed their company , fletcher aviation , to try and win an army contract for a basic trainer aircraft in 1941 . the army only showed brief interest in the plane , but their intention would be to use it as a target drone . insulting .

visit us in washington , dc and chantilly , va to explore hundreds of the world’s most significant objects in aviation and space history .

the last aeronautical chart depiction which has been located of fletcher airport was on the 1960 la local aeronautical chart .

january 5 , 1949 parksley , virginia - sandy fletcher is bundled up to assist her mother with flight instruction .

maybelle fletcher july 29 , 1952 next to her aeronca champ . the door was removed for taking aerial photos .

fletcher started to produce the drop tanks in pasadena in 1945 . a fletcher innovation was making tanks with a cylindrical center section so capacity could be increased by lengthening the tank although this type is not shown in the photograph .

* * * when fletcher aviation was located on the west end of hobby’s main terminal , sky king stopped by to visit in his famous cessna 310 - b , songbird n5348a which was made famous by the sky king tv show the late 1950’s .

maybelle is active in the ninety nines ( a member since 1947 ) , a women ' s aviation group founded by amelia earhart as well as many other aviation related projects . she has participated in numerous air races including the powder puff derby ( transcontinental race ) , air race classic , angel derby ( international races ) , café 400 and other local races . during her 20 years of racing she placed first and second many times . she is sought after as a speaker encouraging young people in their pursuit of aviation careers - especially women in aviation .

a circa 1950s photo ( courtesy of lloyd duke ) of a fletcher fu - 25 defender prototype at rosemead airport .

the fletcher plant building was first built with the main entrance located on the south side which was the airfield side .

a 2017 aerial view looking north showed the fletcher airport site does not bear any recognizable traces as a former airport .

the heasleys sold the airport to fletcher aviation company . the company built droppable aircraft fuel tanks and napalm bombs for the fighter planes used in the korea war . the war was still going on and their products were in high demand and they needed more manufacturing space .

and there was quite an open space between hardwick’s , fletcher’s new factory construction & the west side of the airport apron .

larry fletcher on right , 1944 standing next to bevo howard’s vintage clipped wing cub . nx on wing means experimental airplane .

ron most recalled , “jimmy most was my uncle & owned j . l . most aviation company at the bellflower airport [ in ] 1950 . ”

the 1962 aopa airport directory described " fletcher " airport as having a single 2 , 500 ' turf runway 4 / 22 .

larry fletcher flys a 1946 beechcraft d - 18 for tuboscope . it was purchased from gulf oil for $ 20 , 000 .

maybelle fletcher , sandy & student taking off in the new 1946 taylorcraft purchased for $ 2 , 400 - 1947 parksley , virginia .

the last photo which has been located of fletcher airport was a 5 / 24 / 60 aerial view ( from the ucsb library ) .

was probably a fletcher aircraft crop duster of which they built a few in the early days & then went strictly to fuel tanks . ”

according to bob falcon , “the very last pilot to make a landing & takeoff [ at fletcher airport ] really was dick weis . ”

he was the owner of utility metal products in pasadena . at the time he had a contract to build the wings for north american aviation ' s f - 100s .

fletcher aviation sold its houston fbo and flight school in 2005 . this required fletchair to choose a new location from which to operate and it was decided to move out of the houston area into a more pleasant environment . after a long search , the perfect property was found nestled in the popular texas hill country .

i was there early on testing day . fletcher had set up a canapé tent & parked next to it was the instrument & communications truck .

larry fletcher had ( at last count in 1955 ) 17 , 000 + hours in various types of single and multi - engine aircraft and an atp rating . he has also participated with maybelle in cross country and international air races . larry fletcher is one of the longest standing members of the aircraft owner’s and pilot’s association ( aopa ) and sports a 60 year plus membership pin . in 1996 larry and maybelle were inducted into the international forest of friendship in atchison , kansas , a " living , growing memorial to the world history of aviation and aerospace " . both larry and maybelle have been champions of general aviation for decades .

dr . c . m . brackensick , who with fletcher delk & eugene lieppert , is drawing up plans for the port , accounced today . ”

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just looking thru old 8mm tape from my father on the fletcher racing team . this current video is i ' m mexico . anyone have info and addil interest . would like to get some stories . father was a porsche factory rep . great images from fletcher race car # 55 . including plane captures .

our team ' s vast diversity as well as cumulative years of experience in managing various aviation specialties and functions are what make us the right experts to successfully address your organization ' s needs .

fletcher selected bob downey to be the experimental test pilot . there were two famous bob downey ' s flying at the time in los angeles and both were experimental test pilots .

james lawrence " larry " fletcher and maybelle montgomery fletcher have been continually active in the general aviation community since the early 1940 ' s . larry received his pilot ' s license in 1941 while training for the military in virginia . after submarine hunting on the eastern shore with the civil air patrol , he was later in the army air corps . maybelle , a native texan , learned to fly in 1941 and received her pilot ' s license in 1943 . they were married in 1945 and flew their first aircraft , a piper j - 3 " cub " , on their honeymoon trip .

in the 1950 ' s the fletchers moved to waco , texas . larry began his career as a corporate pilot and maybelle became chief pilot at waco aviation . she worked at instructing , teaching acrobatics , and flying charters .

in the early 1950s , porsche had been working with us company fletcher aviation to develop and test a jet cooling system for porsche’s new 1952 356 cabriolet . the jet cooling was an interesting scheme that saved the power required to drive a cooling fan . porsche did a great deal of development work with the cooling system for several years , trying it out on the early 550 spyder before concluding that the exhaust noise was excessive and abandoned the program for jet cooling .

fletcher wanted to get into the aircraft business with a passion . there were several tries before my entry on the scene . in 1951 they had partnered with an aeronautical engineer by the name of john w . thorp .

the company changed ownership and is now known as sargent fletcher inc . , a subsidiary of cobham . el monte has annexed the site , and a variation of the company name is retained in flair park and flair drive .

fletcher ' s future plans were to build a porsche powered jeep for the army , an agriculture plane and a spin - off of that plane as a small close ground support aircraft for the army , air force and marines . the owners were two brothers , maurie and stan fletcher . they each owned mercedes benz 300 - sl gull wing coupes as personal cars . they also owned a third gull wing that they raced in the mexican road race .

in 1951 larry and maybelle fletcher got their multi - engine ratings in this bamboo bomber at - 17 , cessna uc - 78 , t - 50 . wwii trainer . could buy a nice one for $ 1 , 500 .

the relationship between porsche and fletcher aviation , who manufactured porsche industrial engines under license from the stuttgart automaker , created a unique opportunity of company sponsorship in motorsport , something never considered or seen before . mexico’s carrera panamericana race in november 1954 saw the porsche factory enter two 550s – chassis 550 - 03 and 550 - 04 blazened with sponsor logos across the bonnet . additional sponsors castrol and telefunken radio , whose radios were fitted in the 356 , also joined the support of the team with logos on display , which helped finance the expensive journeys off shore .

fletchair fleet support maintenance and modifications & technical support * ( ts36 ) silver wings fly - in ranch 1409 aviation loop , fredericksburg , texas 78624 . about 12 miles north of kerrville 265 degrees out of stonewall vor , 3 degrees out of centerpoint vor . n 30 . 1294 w 99 . 837 .

one of maybelle’s most significant contributions to aviation was her development of the plan for class b airspace for houston’s hobby airport which the faa accepted without revision . she drew up the plan and developed consensus among the operator’s at hobby before presenting it to the faa . her unique design has positively impacted all air traffic — vfr and ifr , private and commercial , arrivals and departures at hobby airport ever since . in 2001 she was inducted into the texas aviation hall of fame located in the lone star flight museum on galveston island , texas . in 2004 she was the first woman honored with the wright brother’s master pilot award .

i received an interesting email from a person who was researching an aviation project and stumbled across the newspaper accounts of the crash of the 4 aces . he did a " google " on the " 4 aces " and came up with this site and forwarded me the information with some pictures of the crash site .

our extensive personnel are readily available to provide a wide range of expertise and support as needed in areas involving aviation research , training , airport executive requirements , airport operations , airport planning , project management , airspace design , air traffic management , uas integration , rpas pilot training , procedural design , regulatory compliance , etc .

flight testing day come , fortunately it was during summer vacation . i was there early on testing day . fletcher had set up a canopy tent and parked next to it was the instrument and communications truck . there were several of those folding directors’ chairs set around there .

of the two planes the agwagon was the most successful . the military apparently did not want a cheap , utility , close ground support spotter plane . in that i was disappointed . i thought it was a great idea . fletcher sold the agwagon to cable price corporation , a new zealand company .

fletchair , inc . is known worldwide as the single largest manufacturer and distributor of parts for american , american general , grumman - american , and gulfstream - american aircraft . david fletcher , president of fletchair , has grown up with the grumman family of aircraft and has been a stocking grumman dealer since 1974 .

their first aviation business was established on the eastern shore of virginia later that year . the operation , just outside the town of parksley , virginia , consisted of pilot training , area tours , crop dusting , and charter flights . the old photos show vintage aircraft lining the field ! they started a family and soon their daughter sandy logged 200 hours before her second birthday .

fletchair fleet support llc provides maintenance , modifications , and repairs to all the grumman family of aircraft , from the aa - 1 to the twin cougar . located in houston , texas for 32 years , fletchair fleet support is now located at silver wings fly - in ranch 1409 aviation loop , fredericksburg , texas 78624 ( ts36 ) . if your aircraft is in need of maintenance and / or parts , our experienced staff is here to promptly serve you . we are labeled the “grumman specialists” with david fletcher being the on - site “grummanologist” to answer your technical inquiries . in addition to david , garner rice has over 24 years experience exclusively with grumman aircraft and can answer almost any question .

before getting started , i need to express my appreciation to wayman dunlap for running my little ad in pacific flyer for so many issues , all gratis . without that little ad asking for information about the old rosemead airport i never would have gotten the response that i did . i ' m sure that we all miss getting the pacific flyer , the best aviation publication ever to exist .

it was just killing us to ask what happened , but knowing his disdain for kids , we just watched and wondered . hardwick buttoned up the cockpit , popped put the steps , climbed down , tucked up the steps , and replaced the chocks , giving each a good kick . he tied the plane down and drove away . what scared him ? i don’t know . just another day in aviation .

the other was bob downey , the los angeles times aviation editor . i knew him from gus’ flying service he used to rent planes from gus . he was a tall lanky man , always came wearing a suit and flew in his white shirt and tie . he had a full head of hair and as i stated before , had heard rumors that flight testing would be done by bob downey but i did not know which one .

the ford gpas ( aka “seep” ) were becoming scarce by the early 1950s . probably because most of them were sitting at the bottom of canals , lakes , rivers , large puddles in the parking lot , etc . the army , obsessed with amphibious equipment at the time , wanted a replacement . the fletcher boys jumped at this chance to get a lucrative government contract and built the flair .

fletcher would also supply a 190 - mph , single - engine navion aircraft and pilot - journalist - photographer don downie to fly the plane and provide support for the race team . porsche racing director huschke von hanstein who was following the race from the air , called on the drivers to exercise prudence and avoid senseless duels that might send a potential one - two porsche victory up in smoke , especially since the engines on both lead cars were ailing .

it was a cold overcast blustery saturday morning . my brother ernie and i saw hardwick opening fletcher’s back entrance gate to their factory property . some of his planes that were flight worthy were inside the fenced area . he drove his chevy pickup to the p - 38 that was parked close to the east side of the fenced area . we knew this meant some excitement was to be had there . we went over to the fence and found some boxes to set on .

at this same show fletcher showed its “jeep” offering . it was an amphibious four place small car powered by a porsche engine . they built a muddy water pit for it to drive through , they ran it down the runway and turned it on a dime , and they ran it down in the river with generals riding to demonstrate its rough abilities . this was all to no avail . no jeeps were sold to the military . it was a neat combination in my opinion . would have been better than the humvee and a lot cheaper .

later on fletcher had a show and tell and flight demonstration that i was lucky enough to witness . there were a lot of military people in attendance . actually there were generals from the air force , army and the marines , as well as lower officers , all pilot or aviators as the case may be . the highest general was three stars . this picture was taken of that event at rosemead air port . the display was setup in front of the cap hut . in this picture at the background 1 / 3 from the left , is the agwagon next to a c - 47 to the right of it . some of the generals came in the c - 47 .

one other story that gets some confirmation is the one about 3 stearman ' s pulling a single large banner . i was visiting a fellow banner tow competitor at torrance airport back when i was flying the stearman ' s prior to 1980 . at that time bob marks ( marks aviation ) told me that he was towing banners in a stearman out of rosemead airport on a new years day when an accident happened . i tried to contact bob marks at this time ( september 2008 ) only to find out that he passed away last year . but his story as i recall it is that the three stearman ' s were coming in for the banner drop when one of them did not " pickle " it exactly at the same time as the other two did . regardless of why the pilot did not accomplish the release , it would only take a nanosecond for a extra large load to immediately stall an airplane . i know this from flying the giant coors beer can coors we flew with the l19 . any reduction in power was an immediate stall . the following pictures of the new years day crash were forwarded to me by dan rhinehart ( nc14881 ) . the pilot is identified as wayne clark .

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then in 1953 they had two breakthroughs . ok , really just one . that breakthrough was the fu - 24 , which was primarily produced in new zealand as a crop duster . many are still in use today .

the flair used the mechanicals from a porsche 356 . the flat - four engine , transmission and suspension were bolted to the aluminum tub . it was light enough , around 1 , 490 pounds , to be air transportable . a transfer case and front differential were designed to make it four wheel drive . it seemed everything was working in their favor . until they used the aircraft engine cooling setup patented by otto koppen to try to propel the flair in the water . mr . koppen’s system used the exhaust gases to draw cooling air past the cylinder heads of an aircraft engine then out an exhaust exit . it was supposed to be much more efficient in aircraft applications since it did not require large cowl openings , and would work regardless of the forward windspeed . this was a seemingly genius system — it could cool the air - cooled porsche engine and propel the craft all at once !

unfortunately , it did not propel the flair very well . test drivers said you had better luck going anywhere in the water by turning the wheels . and with that , the project was sunk .

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i have written in my home page ( first flight ) about my first time up in an airplane and how significant that was to me . the fact that it was taken at the old rosemead airport has made that airport very special in my memory . and now some years later i have received pictures taken in that era that embellish my memories . on my home page i say that my first flight was in gus gehrig ' s new luscombe silvaire that had " four aces " painted on both sides of the fuselage . i also mention that the " four aces " met up with the nearby krla radio towers one night , ( i mistakenly identify them as the klac towers on my home page ; actually on the 1950 map above they are listed as kxla ) . here are some before and after pictures of the " four aces " sent to me by dan rhinehart . pictured standing next to the " four aces " are bill berry and jim berry .

that airplane , the " four aces " and the one that was to be my second ride ( a brand new 47 stinson ) belonged to gus gehrig , the local fbo at rosemead . gus is working on the aircoupe victor vincent vurpilat iii and i took on a cross - country to mohave airport . the stinson is the one we flew to brackett to visit the pomona fair .

the banner operator was van noble and i am told that the caa banned flying a banner with multiple airplanes after that accident . i have a picture of the flight given to me many years ago by rod worthington , and if i ever find it i will get it on this page .

one of the notables when i was a fledgling was jack hardwick . i had the occasion to fly with him in his bonanza out of old el monte . he was quite a character to say the least . anyway he was one of the crowd at rosemead at the time , and here are some pix of his operation .

i flew with him several times in his bonanza out of el monte . i still remember that he flew it with everything " to the wall " ; no reduction in power or propeller . later on in the 70 ' s i visited his place in south el monte and saw among other things , two me - 109 fuselages and wings . for some reason walt podolece had to do the importing because of some kind of block against hardwick . in the 60 ' s when i had my pt - 23 / 26 parked at brackett , hardwick had 3 all black p - 38 ' s on the ramp .

in the late 70 ' s i was in the habit of hiring very young kids to help me with the banners and maintenance . i am still in contact with several of them , and one , dan macpherson , helped me in rib stitching new fabric on my stearman . dan sent me some pictures taken in 1946 at rosemead by william t . larkins .

newscaster clete roberts flew into meadowlark for lunch one sunny day , and i got into a conversation with him about stearman ' s . it ended up with him taking a flight in my two - holer after lunch . when he saw this picture he identified it as being his stearman at rosemead . dan rhinehart sent me the rest of these pictures . the l19 shown parked at rosemead was the very first one i ever flew in . in fact , the 2nd picture is one i took as my unit received the airplane at old camp cooke ( now vandenberg afb ) in 1951 . i believe the pilot is lt . tucker eckenrode . a side note : i got stuck with guarding the airstrip on the weekend while everyone else got the weekend off . however , i made good use of my isolated position by taxiing the l19 back and forth on the airstrip . i do believe i actually got it a few feet off of the ground once .

` a side note : in the 80 ' s when i was running the banner towing operation out of meadowlark i used to start my day off with a donut and coffee at the little shop on the corner of warner and bolsa chica . on one morning i was reading the front page of the l . a . times which covered the story of a crash in which a twin beech hauling skydivers somewhere up near coalinga . apparently they lost one engine and the skydivers panicked and ran toward the open door at the rear . obviously the weight and balance shift was more than the pilot could handle . so this very well dressed guy looks over my shoulder and says " i used to fly those things " . my thoughtful and not said was " yeah , sure , we all did " . the very next day again at the donut shop the same guy was there and i got him into a conversation . one thing led to another and he told me that he once owned two airports in socal . i thought for sure that he was a bs ' er . i pinned him down asking for " what " airports were they ? and he answered " one was in rosemead and the other was in the high desert " . now he had my full attention . yes , this was the real guy , heasley ( see the " h " on the cowl of the pt19 picture ) . he knew exactly every detail including the crash of the racer that left it ' s imprint on the taxiway . unfortunately i did not follow up on this relationship as at that time we were sort of speaking in the present tense . the heasley brothers did own rosemead airport .

after running an ad in the pacific flyer , i received more stories to add to this site . garey wittich wrote : " when i was a kid around 6 years old ( 1947 ) we had family christmas reunions at my aunt ' s house in rosemead . some relative of ours had a piper cub and offered to take me for a ride at rosemead . this too was my first airplane ride like yours . my dad had me sit on his lap and away we went . to this day i remember it well and it inspired me to get my private licence in 1972 and i have been flying ever since . now i am a cfi and mei and am building a rv - 8a in my garage . just a simple ride in 1947 changed my life . now i am " plane nuts " .

don fox and i flew model airplanes and rode motorcycles together in our teen years , but our paths didn ' t cross when he learned to fly at rosemead and later on had an airplane at el monte at the same time that i did . now 60 years later we are in contact .

ross mayfield wrote : " my father , lowell mayfield , used to fly at gus ' s at rosemead and has stories of his days there . he painted the 4 aces logo on the luscombe silvaire in your photos , and also the bugs bunny on another luscombe seen in the background of one of your photos . he also painted a cow jumping over the moon on another airplane . my father also painted the sign on top of gus ' s building and also the sign for hardwick aircraft . " ross sent this nice picture taken by his father on march 21st , 1948 from navion n8906h .

the crash of the midget racer explained : although it has been over 60 years now , the one thing i remember is standing around with a bunch of older guys looking at this perfect imprint of an airplane on what i recall as being a taxiway . as mentioned earlier i did talk to bob heasley about the crash and he gave me some details most of which i have now forgotten , but i recall him saying that he and some others were standing there watching the airplane as it hit the deck . dan rhinehart recalled his older friend , joe white , telling him of a goodyear racer crashing at rosemead around 1948 , and that the airplane was a v - tail design by art chester . dan further found that art chester ' s " wimpy " crashed on july 25th 1948 . a friend of dan ' s verified that there was a fatal crash of an art chester racer in july 1948 , and the pilot ' s name was mike anrander .

ross mayfield wrote the following : " my dad was standing about 20 feet from the impact point when this crash occurred . the plane was a v - tailed art chester racer and had just been purchased by the pilot who was now doing a little showing off in it . my dad was going to give two of his brothers a ride and was starting a mag check when this guy flew across in front of them aligning himself with the taxiway ( same heading as the p . e . tracks ) and pulled up . my father said " we might as well get out and watch the show " so they shut down and got out to stand right next to his plane and watch . apparently on this art chester racer , at certain speeds the air over the wing would blank our the elevator / rudder v - tail . this is what happened in this case . as you state , the plane left it ' s mark embedded in the tarmac . my dad said that you could see the imprint of each wing rib and the tires made 4 " deep impressions . after witnessing this , one of my uncles announced that he didn ' t really want to go flying that day .

the interesting fact to me here is that i have always made the statement that i got my first ride when i was 16 , but other than my memory there has never been anything written to prove that fact . but now , knowing that the crash almost positively was the art chester racer that crashed in july 1948 , and that i was there when the imprint was still fresh , then that dates my first ride as age 16 !

who gave me my first ride explained : lloyd duke , his younger brother ernie and family lived nearby the rosemead airport and both lloyd and ernie got their first ride there . it was a natural follow up that upon entering high school lloyd and his brother got into the " airplane washing " business and had a steady business all through the high school years keeping gus gehrig ' s airplanes clean . lloyd told me a very interesting fact that i had no comprehension of . when the stranger asked me if i wanted to go for a ride i just guessed that he owned the airplane . as lloyd tells it , the 4 aces was gus ' s personal airplane and not a rental , and he only let one other person fly it ; the guy that gave me my first ride . i hope to find someone who will recall the fellows name .

gus loved his four aces . he kept it washed , waxed and wiped off . eventually that was my job . four aces was a shiny unpainted aluminum - skinned airplane with a big hand of the four aces painted on each side of the fuselage .

one afternoon a guy showed up with his girlfriend . he was a friend of gus . i listened to their conversation . the man worked at the los angeles police department as a radio repairman . he was also a pilot ( the fellow who gave me my first ride wore a military shirt and officers cap ; i presumed that he was an ex - military pilot ) . he wanted to take his girlfriend for a ride , and he was also the only one gus let fly the luscombe 4 aces beside himself .

he and gus did a preflight and when that was completed the man and the girlfriend got in . i noted that she was a small very pretty girl .

they took off and about an hour later gus got a phone call . he got very emotional . it was the police . his four aces had crashed .

without saying anything he locked up the business , got into his car and left the field . i waited for news , and was anxious to know what had happened . it was getting late and i had to go home .

there was some news on the radio that there had been a crash and two people were killed . there was no detailed information other than that they had hit a radio tower .

i spent a terrible night . the next morning , saturday , i was at the airport . a tow truck had just delivered the wreckage to the bone yard just south of the big quonset hut hanger . gus was there , not speaking to anyone , just quietly crying , a manly cry , no sniveling , just tears and rumpled chin .

there were a lot of other people there looking at the wreckage ( see photos at beginning of site ) . the only thing i heard gus say before he left was , " it ' s only worth 26 bucks now . " he didn ' t have hull insurance on the plane . only public liability and property damage that covered the farmers cabbage crop damage .

rosemead airport . there were three 415 - foot towers in a row there at that time . witnesses said they were seen to be weaving a sashay between the towers , when the plane collided with the third tower , about four feet from the top . the left wing sheared off at three feet from the cockpit . the wing piece fluttered to the ground , while the remainder of the plane spun violently into the ground . the engine was buried three feet deep .

i would have probably been crying too , but i was shocked at the condition of the plane , and the gore that remained after the bodies were removed . the plane did not burn , so every thing was quite vivid . the instrument panel was about 6 inches from the cabin rear bulkhead . all the instruments were broken . i guess the prettier the girl the more stupid a man acts . lloyd duke

i guess i was lucky as on my first ride the pilot also did some stunts , again just south of the airport , but didn ' t tangle with the radio towers .

since lloyd spent his high school years at rosemead , he has lots of stories to tell , and some of them are already on paul franklin ' s website , so i won ' t duplicate them here . one story that sticks in my mind is one i recall reading about in the newspaper ; an on - going story about two brothers , twins , who had this ex - military airplane with dubious ownership , and how they were hiding it from the government . this goes to show one how one can recall things incorrectly . i recall that the airplane was a c - 46 and that the brothers had an irish name . however i cannot quarrel with lloyd ' s version because he was there . here is his story :

the heasleys were characters . they were twin brothers and it was fun to be close to them . they owned the airport . i experienced one intriguing afternoon there when one of the brothers flew in , in a c - 47 goony bird . he parked at the fuel pits and the brothers were jumping around hugging each other . the plane had been in litigation over the ownership . from the conversations going on there , this conflict had not been completed and the plane was going to be hidden some place in the desert . quickly after re - fueling , they departed for the mystery place in the desert

( remember , bob heasley had told me in my meeting him in the 80 ' s that the y owned 2 airports , rosemead and one in the high desert ) .

i had never seen such a big plane up close . it was huge .

shortly thereafter the police showed up looking for them . of course nobody knew where they went . they made the front page news in the los angles times for this .

three or four days later the brothers , showed up at the los angles city hall and surrendered . they were arrested and put into jail for not telling the location of the gunny bird . they stayed there for forty eight days before they gave up the location of the bird .

termite snider was famous from the channel five television coverage of the saturday night jalopy races at ascot race track , in carson , california . he was a winner , and termite was also a pilot .

he owned the weather beaten bt - 13 that was tied down next to the big hanger . termite was a character . it was always an event when he showed up . he was a chunky , muscular man , who like hardwick always had a cigar chomped between his teeth and was always joking with the people around him .

one day he showed up with two five gallon buckets of black paint and a four inch paint brush . he began to paint the plane using the four - inch paintbrush . all the while he painted , everybody at the airport stopped by to comment . he had a continuous audience . the job was finished in about four hours .

it looked terrible . all black with deep brush strokes going every which way . the four hour old paint still being sticky , termite decided to complete the drying process by flying the plane .

i got the honor of climbing the ladder with the inertial starter crank handle , to assist with starting the engine . the starting procedure consists of engaging the crank handle to a shaft end in the starting compartment . turning the crank handle clockwise starts the fly wheel to turn . it turns hard at first , but as the rpm increases the turning becomes easier . as the fly wheel rpm increases a magic noise , or whine , with increasing pitch , is emitted . that sound is beyond description here . it is a sound that to me connotes an adventure is about to begin . a sound that , even now , just thinking about it , gives me goose pimples . i closed and latched the hatch shut , and climbed down the ladder , backed away to the wing tip , and gave the all clear , " thumbs up . "

when termite returned a half hour later , the paint was still tacky , but now had the added features of runs and smears . he complained he lost six miles an hour in cruise configuration .

what i remember back in the 50 ' s at el monte was talking to a friend of jerry curl who told of flying into rosemead with 13 bt - 13 ' s . he got anyone he could get that could fly to go with him to bring back his " fleet " , so yes , there should have been quite a few bt - 13 ' s at rosemead .

in writing this i have often asked myself " why was i flying with jack hardwick for some reason " ? i think i can put 2 and 2 together now with lloyd ' s help . lloyd wrote the following about jack and his temco buckaroo .

jack hardwick was a hot dog pilot , especially on this fine spring afternoon .

he owned a very rare temco swift . called the buckaroo it was built for training new military pilots . it was a globe swift with the fuselage slimmed down and tandem seating with a jet type canopy . the windshield of course was fixed , the forward access hatch slid back to a stop just behind the front seat . the aft hatch was hooked to the forward hatch , and unlatches from the forward hatch to slide on back to a stop just aft of the rear seat . i guess you would say it had a canopy consisting of three pieces , the windshield , forward hatch , and aft hatch to complete a jet type bubble canopy .

there is a safety placard restricting take off with the aft hatch open . jack taxied out in his beautiful buckaroo . it’s skin was polished aluminum with the standard red , white and blue military markings . real pretty .

it was warmish so jack had all the hatches open . i thought he would close the hatches after his before take off run - up . run - up completed , flaps at 10 o , he taxied onto the runway while adding take off power as he turned onto the runway centerline . next i am sure he hit the gear up switch . as long as there is pressure on the wheels they will not retract . it just looks good for a hot dog pilot for the wheels to retract as soon as you pop off the runway .