Up, Up And Away In My ... Powered Parachute
LAKE MINNETONKA, Minn. (WCCO) -- The song of the cicada isn't the only buzz that can be heard from a west metro corn field. There's a hum from a contraption that looks like a bug.
Just west of Lake Minnetonka, people have been getting a show this summer. It's not a bird or a plane, but a powered parachute.
Tom Fitzhenry is the pilot of this powered parachute and he said it's the safest thing in the air
"If we do land in the water, we become a watercraft and we have to have a life vest," he said. "If you have it, you'll never use it, is my theory."
That's also his theory for keeping a Gremlin bell on the front. Its purpose is to keep any evils away.
"The only crashes that really happen on these is on takeoff. That is the critical phase," Fitzhenry said.
So far, "Fitz" as he's known to his fellow fliers, has never had an accident. He takes every precaution.
Between the lines and the wind conditions, the process might not be high tech, but it works.
"We always go, 'Clear prop!' to make sure nobody's back there," said Fitzhenry.
And just like that -- they're off the ground.
So is the rest of this pseudo-flying club. While the daredevils didn't want to talk, they let their flying speak for them. They're free spirits now, after fighting heart disease and cancer.
Their single seats don't require FAA approval or a pilot's license. In fact, it doesn't take much to take flight.
"In a single seat, less than 254 and less than 5 gallons, you just need a driver's license and we can get you in it and we can get you certified to fly," Fitzhenry said.
He got his pilot's license to register and fly his two-seater.
"So this is one of the few fully-legal birds in the state," he said.
Going 34 mph and burning just 3 gallons of premium gas an hour, you cover plenty of ground and water.
The unusual sight becomes an attraction to boaters. And like chop on the water, wind can be the only problem in the air.
It's not enough to stop the flight. Winds have to top 10 mph before that would happen.
For landing, an old fashioned farm field acts as a runway and guides in the modern day marvel.
A two-seat aircraft costs around $17,000. And don't think winter stops powered parachutes from taking flight. In fact, the pilots say it's usually the best time to get up in the air.
