Below The Rim - 1975

On the heels of Charlie Caldwell’s sea story “JO Training Flight – 1956” in this section, on 4 August 2019, a flurry of emails ensued about another “statute of limitations” incident, this time involving a VP-45 P-3.  It all started when Fred Haynes (VP-45 TACCO in the early 70’s) commented to me on Charlie’s flying under the bridge story.  He said:

“Bill…Those were the days when flight crews could pull off feats such as this will relative anonymity.  I assume that the shoreline is the West Bank by the lack of construction along the shoreline.  Thus, who was there to see this, and the means of communication were such that even if one did see this, how did they report it? 

Admittedly, it was truly a feat of momentous accomplishment, most of those were such that one could not brag about them until a few decades after it actually occurred.  Fortunately for Chuck, 60 years later, he was able to see his feat on paper.  Congrats to Chuck.  Good on ya!  Fred”

That email was followed by another to me from Wally Massenberg, VADM (ret) and a pilot in VP-45 during the same period.  He said:

“Bill…In a later era, the late Denny Waldron (VP-45 pilot - mid 70’s) was caught flying below the rim of the Grand Canyon ... possibly captured on film and definately caught by an airliner that turned him in ... not sure that the airliner wasn’t doing the same thing. Anybody that was with Denny that day can probably elaborate.  The spirit of flight was alive even in the 70’s and 80’s!  Wally”

Another mid-70’s VP-45 pilot, Gary “Bucco” Rogers, jumped in at this point, in reply to Wally, with a bit more on this sea story…and another (sorta) related incident.  Actually it’s not related at all but I can include it because its fun and I’m the WebMaster:

“Weasel (Wally's call sign)…Denny told me the "whole" story and there was more than just the Grand Canyon.  Denny stopped along the way and picked up his (civilian) brother and he, the brother, was with them on the “below the rim” flight. (Clark Lindo was there too). Also, having one of the early LantFlt (proto-type) "low-viz" paint schemes on his airplane, Denny, I'm sure, though he wouldn't be identified.

Somewhat related, when I was a Flight Instructor at NAS Saufley Field, we had access to the station T-28's and flew them regularly.  There are many told and untold stories about us flying up the Styx River registering ZERO feet on the altimeter and flat hatting over the Bay Minette Golf Course.  The most print worthy one was a time that CAPT Bill (redacted), USMC and myself took a T-28 to Ft Lauderdale for a weekend.  Bill came from a very wealthy family and his uncle had a home in the same exclusive golf community as Jack Nicklaus (Nicklaus developed it).  We took off from Saufley after work on Friday and landed at the airfield in Lauderdale near his house.  We parked our trusty Trojan next to Nicklaus' aircraft the "Golden Bear".  His uncle's Limo came and picked us up, took us to his "mansion" and had his "wait staff" serve us dinner in the formal dining room which consisted of a long formal table for 20 set up for just the 2 of us. The meal was served by 2 waiters and consisted of a huge rack of lamb…with an unbelievable assortment of trimmings.  After dinner we went to a local nightclub and lived up to expectations of a typical "Naval Aviator's" night out.  The next day was an uneventful day bar hopping and then the story gets interesting.  Sunday morning we get up and the "Limo" takes us back to the airport.  We filed, pre-flighted the T-28, got fuel and prepared to leave.  Bill is in the front seat and we roll.  Since the airport is so close to his uncle's home and the Golf Course, Bill decides to BUZZ the golf course. So at 9:00 AM on a Sunday morning this huge, loud T-28 comes barreling down Jack Nicklaus's Golf Course (straight down No #1 fairway) as a VERY low altitude.  Golfers are everywhere on the course...looking up and scattering, and when we are halfway down the fairway and with enough airspeed, Bill pulls the nose up and does a damn "aileron roll" over the #1 green.   I had immediate visions of Captain's Mast, restriction, courts martial, letters of reprimand, etc….but it was a fun flight.  Otherwise, the flight back to Saufley was "normal."   Bucco”

OK....getting back to the “below the rim” incident. Wally (the "Other Wally"), a Pelican Pilot in the early 70's and mostly famous for being on Crew 20 with me and for passing out every time he got a flu shot, confessed this in a follow-on email:

Alright…I was on that flight.  Denny picked me up that day in Houston where I was sent for recruiting duty after 45. On that crew, the 3P was brand new and didn’t know Denny was then going out to North Island and pick up somebody (his brother) and then come back via the Grand Canyon. Because of that, we didn’t have charts for the Western US and didn’t realize that until well into the flight.  Denny or the 2P instigated a little “5 finger” chart acquisition at North Island for the flight back. In the Grand Canyon we were “pilot nav” and ATC didn’t seem to care.  Fun experience and I never remember seeing another aircraft…but I did see a lot of tourists up on an observation platform “on the rim” waving down at us.

After that little low altitude training mission, we returned uneventfully  to Ellington Field where our recruiting district was sponsoring a static display during a Blue Angel weekend.  And now you know the rest of the story. 

Fred Haynes then added:

“When I worked for the FAA on Washington as a Regulations Analyst in the mid to late 1990s, I remember the rule making project to rewrite the rules governing flying in the Grand Canyon and below the rim.  Public hearings were held in accordance with the process.

There were so many conflicting issues.  Tour operators were protective of their territories and naturists were complaining about the noise pollution that was interrupting the ecological tranquility of the Grand Cannon.  At the same time, general aviation pilots were complaining about losing a huge chunk of the southwestern airspace. 

One of the attendees produced a restored photograph of a P-3 conducting such a "below the rim" event at the Grand Canyon. The LOC photo microdata corresponds to the VP-45 flight piloted by one LT Waldron. See photo just to the right.

I can’t imagine what the public comment would have been had a Navy P-3 come zooming bye during the hearings.  Fred”

Right after Fred’s email comment, Pooh Bear Mitchell, a mid-70’s VP-45 FE and current Association President, noted:

“Also in this era, as a Flight Engineer, I flew with a 45 pilot (name withheld) “below the rim” in a P-3 once...and then again with a Pro’s Nest (VP-30) P-3 crew. And BOTH times was with the same pilot!  Pooh Bear”

Then Gene Graham, VP-45 pilot and Ops Officer in mid-70’s and former Association President, who was aware of this incident at the time, wrote:

“The airline that reported Denny was one that provided tourists with a “below the rim “sightseeing experience.  It was certified to do that and was the only one that was supposed to be there.  They had to maneuver to get out of Denny’s way…and I think Denny told me he never saw the other airplane.  GenieK”

Finally, Fred Haynes sums it all up with a pat on the back for Bucco:

“Bucco…Great story!  Good to know that you had terrific instructor pilots in the T-28s.   Now, I better understand where you were coming from when we flew together.  Fred”

Submitted by Bill Hobgood, WebMaster (VP-45 '71 - '74)