Husky aircraft makes training flight into Crystal Lake Airport

DECATUR -- Less than a week after a vintage Piper Cub made a less than perfect landing at the Crystal Lake Airport near Decatur July 18, a modern version of that type of aircraft executed a series of perfect full-stop landings near the same spot July 24.

A 2018 A-1B Husky is owned by Oz Aircraft LLC of Bentonville and is part of the Oz Flying Club. The pilot of the aircraft was unknown, as was his true reason for the visit to Crystal Lake Airport.

Pilots, especially students, often use the uncontrolled Crystal Lake Airport for training purposes such as landing and takeoff instruction and, as was the probable case with this pilot, cross-country navigational training.

The Husky, built by the Aviat Aircraft Company of Afton, Wyo., is the modern equivalent to the Piper PA-18 Super Cub which was first flown in 1949 (nearly 19 years after the original Piper J-3 Cub). The Super Cub quickly gained notoriety among bush pilots in Alaska and the wilderness of Canada as a rugged and reliable means of getting supplies into a location with small grass runways. While the A-1B is a bit bigger and heavier than the PA-18, it still fulfilled the same mission and is an excellent bush aircraft.

After completing his three full-stop exercises, the Huskey and its pilot turned to the northwest and soon disappeared behind the hills on the way to the next stop.