Engineer spends his 81st in the sky
Bill McNamara gives two peace signs after his 81st birthday flight with Erich Fritchman of Horizon Dreams. ZACH TAYLOR/Staff
Fritchman buckles the shoulder straps for McNamara before his flight. ZACH TAYLOR/Staff
Mac wipes out the controls on the Cessna and states, “It’s like riding a bike. You never forget it.” ZACH TAYLOR/Staff
Local beekeeper Bob Ketch helps McNamara into the pilot’s seat of the Cessna 172A. ZACH TAYLOR/Staff
Test flight engineers stood before a F/A-18 Hornet on the tarmac of the NAS Pax River airfield in the 1980s. ZACH TAYLOR/Staff
Bill McNamara shows the camera a modified RC airplane at his home in Habersham County. ZACH TAYLOR/Staff
Bill “Mac” McNamara has harbored a lifelong love for all things skyward.
McNamara was born in Buffalo, New York, on July 30, 1943. Though his family growing ...