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Introduction by Ray
Fowler
Web
designer and fellow
aviation enthusiast...
When Ed and Connie
Bowlin invited me to
help them catalogue
over twenty years of
aviation collectibles,
I jumped at the
chance. Stored for up
to 2 decades, I knew
that this collection
would be impressive,
but I was not prepared
for the treasures I
would find! Almost
like finding buried
treasure (but more
valuable!), their new
hangar is lined with
rows of autographed
books, signed aviation
prints, models, and
other unique items
that can be found
nowhere else. I was
left speechless! What
amazed me even more is
that Ed and Connie are
making every single
piece in this
collection available
to aviation
enthusiasts like you
and me -- to add to
our own personal
collections!
Two P-51D Mustangs sit
ready for a combat
mission
in the Aviation
Autograph hangar in
Griffin Georgia.
I was
even more impressed
when I learned how
these items were
obtained over the
years. The collection
exists now primarily
because of the efforts
of one man, Lt. Col.
Dave McFarland (USAF,
Retired). As former
Chief of the History
Department at the Air
Command and Staff
College (Maxwell AFB,
Montgomery, AL), Lt.
Col. McFarland has
traveled all over the
world in his quest to
personally meet air
and space legends, men
and women who have
significantly
contributed to the
advancement of
aviation. Then, in
1982, Dave founded the
annual "Gathering of
Eagles," bringing
together the most
distinguished aviators
from the world over.
Since that time, 287
of the most
accomplished people
from the fields of
aviation, space, and
engineering have been
honored from 25
different nations.
Each year, a Gathering
of Eagles aviation
print was commissioned
and contains the
original signatures of
these aviation
heroes. This website
is the only source in
the world for the 19
prints in the Eagle's
unique print series
and there are less
than 20 private
collectors known to
have the entire
series. It is through
Dave's personal
friendships that he
amassed one of the
largest collections of
autographed aviation
artifacts in the
world. It's as if
you're holding a
living piece of
history -- their
signature somehow adds
a personal connection,
making this collection
not only incredible,
but invaluable.
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Press
Photo of Ed & Connie
by the P-51
Ed &
Connie in the B-17.
Connie has given up
the left seat to let a
very fortunate EAA
Historical Society
contributor get a few
minutes at the
controls of the mighty
Flying Fortress!
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Which
leads me to the
introduction of the
two aviation
"superstars" who are
responsible for
creating
Aviationautographs.com
... Ed and Connie
Bowlin. Being
modest, Ed & Connie
asked that I not list
their background and
accomplishments in
aviation, however
being in control of
web content has its
privileges! Being two
of most accomplished
aviators I know, I am
excited to have an
opportunity to
introduce the
individuals who you
will meet in your
dealings with Aviation
Autographs.
With
over 30,000 flying
hours, Ed Bowlin is
one of the most
experienced, and
certainly the
smoothest pilot I have
had the pleasure to
fly with. For years,
I have watched Ed
perform airshows with
flawless precision in
everything from WWII
fighters to early
vintage jet aircraft
and marveled at his
piloting skill. Ed's
sensational military,
airline and civilian
background has allowed
him to fly hundreds of
different performance
aircraft and his
experience and
accomplishments in
aviation are
practically
unrivaled... well,
except by wife Connie!
Connie has over 17,000
flight hours in over
70 types of aircraft.
Currently the only
woman flying the B-17,
she holds various type
ratings and is
authorized to fly a
wide range of
high-performance
single and
multi-engine aircraft
(including the P-51
Mustang, Republic
P-47 Thunderbolt,
North American T-28
Trojan, Lockheed
T-33, and British
Aerospace Jet Provost,
just to name a few!)
She recently retired
from Delta Air Lines as a 757/767
Captain.
Thankful for the
opportunity to have a
great career and take
advantage of early
retirement.... In her
spare time she writes
aviation articles and
has been published in
several well-known
aviation magazines. It
is always fun to see
the faces of
spectators when she
climbs out of a P-51
at airshows! She was
honored as an Eagle in
1998 at the "Gathering
of Eagles" and is
truly an inspiration
to female aviators.
Having
flown aircraft that
most of us only dream
about, this husband
and wife team are well
know by aviation's
elite, and are both
part of that club as
well. When planning
to attend my Air Force
pilot graduation, they
arranged for one of my
heroes to speak at the
ceremony, triple ace
Col. C.E. "Bud"
Anderson. When
Col. Anderson came
down with the flu just
a week before the
event, they said, "No
problem". They simply
picked up the phone,
and General "Tex"
Hill of the Flying
Tigers fame agreed to
come on short notice.
They are best of
friends with aviation
legend Gen. Chuck
Yeager and are
selling items from his
personal collection.
These are the types of
friendships that Ed &
Connie have with the
most accomplished
heroes in aviation.
Ed and Connie are not
only two of the best
pilots, but are two of
the finest people I
know. I feel honored
to call them my
friends. |
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I hope
that you find Aviation
Autographs to be an
invaluable resource to
finding aviation
artifacts. We have
tried to include the
supporting information
for the items and
include excellent
photo scans. However,
we spend much of our
time flying and may
have omitted
information that you
would like regarding a
certain item. Please
bring any problems to
our attention and we
will send you any
additional supporting
information that you
request.
Good
luck on finding the
treasures that lie
within!
Ray Fowler
Here
is just one of the
shelves in the hangar
that are full of
autographed books!
Note the aircraft
models on the
right... their bases
are signed!
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(770) 233-8880
If you have
any comments or questions,
please contact us at
info@aviationautographs.com.
All content, logos,
pictures, and videos are the
property of Aviation
Autographs.
Copyright © 2000 |
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