Owner Q&A: Steve Craig

Air Classics, May 2003

Do you remember how you became interested in aviation?

Yes. When I was twelve, we lived to the south of Kansas City near a major Air Force base. Lots of my friends had fathers who were officers and fighter pilots so we talked a lot about airplanes and the military. Plus, I really loved that old Sky King television series.

How did you get started flying?

I was on a Navy scholarship to the University of Kansas. I wanted to become a Naval pilot and, at that time, the Navy paid for your private pilot license but you had to solo in under ten hours. A flight school had been contracted by the military at Lawrence and I went through flight training with guys that would be heading to the Air Force or Army. I soloed in 7.4-hr and was the first of my group to go solo. After graduation, I was shipped off to Pensacola for Naval flight training and started flying Beech T-34s. However, this was in the spring of 1970 and that's when Richard Nixon ordered a huge downsizing of the military - when he decided to let the South Vietnamese fight their own war. There was a big reduction in flight training and I went on active duty but not as a pilot. I was on submarines and spent time with the SEALS.

What did you do when you got out of the Navy?

I went to law school and then went into business. The company I started working with had a Twin Beech and a Turbo 210. I went on to get commercial, multi, and instrument ratings.

When did you purchase your first aircraft?

I left that company in 1980 and met Charlie Naugle, the dean of T-34 restorers.

I liked the T-34 from my Navy days and when the chance came up to bid on a Civil Air Patrol T-34, I did and wound up owning the plane. I didn't do a full restoration but had the bird cleaned up and detailed out. In 1982, 1 convinced Holiday Inn to sponsor a Pitts aerobatic team. They did and it was a big hit and I went on to purchase a Pitts Special in 1983 and started getting into aerobatics. I also bought a P model Bonanza and, over the years, have owned a variety of general aviation aircraft.

How did you get interested in vintage and veteran aviation?

As a kid, I hung around Stateline Airport (unfortunately, no longer there) and saw some great airplanes like the Beech Staggerwing and a Monocoupe owned by the famed pilot Harold Neuman. In law school, a friend gave me a copy of the book Great Planes by James Gilbert. I read about the Staggerwing and the way Gilbert described the plane really made me want to own one. Same with the Jungmeister - Gilbert owned such a craft and he praised the machine. I set a goal for eventually owning both craft.

When did you realize your goals?

I bought my first Jungmeister in Britain during 1984. I would go on and sell this aircraft to buy a Staggerwing. This was a G model and the very last Staggerwing built. However, in 1997 1 had the chance to purchase the first production Jungmeister and did so. Thus I completed my goal (see Air Classics Volume 38, Number 2 for further details of Steve's Jungmeister).

Now you have a Warbird in your stable.

I had been looking at the Wildcat for quite some time. I knew it was one of only two Grumman-built Wildcats flying. As a Navy officer, the Wildcat really interested me. In the early days of World War Two, if it had not been for the Wildcat and the heroic Navy and Marine pilots the outcome of the Pacific War may have been very, very different. The Wildcat fought through the entire war and although it may not have the glamour of a P-51 Mustang, it is a very significant American warplane and fits into my idea of collecting significant and historic airframes.

What's in the future?

I have a Bucker Jungmann that will be coming out of a complete restoration at Santa Paula Airport in the next few weeks. The aircraft is in desert camouflage as a squadron hack for the Afrika Korps and will be a most interesting machine. With the three biplanes and the Wildcat, I feel I am a very fortunate man to be able to preserve various segments of aviation history. For now, I want to keep all four flying and stay proficient in each type of aircraft.