Cessna

Raised on a farm with a strong work ethic and a knack for all things mechanical, Thurman Sizer “T.S.” Alphin was known for working with his hands and rarely being idle. He also developed a love of airplanes. “He loved fixing things,” Mary Beth Alphin said of her father, an aircraft mechanic and inspector who founded Alphin Aircraft. “He wanted us to share his love of flying,” Mary Beth said. “He was fortunate that his vocation was his avocation.

Duane Morral and Les Kerns balance a Cessna fuselage in its new home at Discovery Station Monday. From left, Dave Churchey, Tracey Potter, and Duane Morral push a Pratt & Whitney aircraft engine in to its new home. Les Kerns, far left, holds the door.

A Cessna 402 airplane had a potential problem with its left-side landing gear while it was in the air Wednesday morning before landing safely at Hagerstown Regional Airport, a 911 dispatcher said. It appeared the plane was getting ready to land when authorities were alerted by the airport's flight control tower at 10:18 a.m., the dispatcher said. The plane was able to land without incident and the passengers onboard were OK, the dispatcher said.

Search crews were searching north-central Maryland and south-central Pennsylvania today for a small plane that's been missing since Tuesday afternoon. The Cessna 172 plane, piloted by David Weiss, 72, of Bethesda, took off from Gaithersburg Airport about noon Tuesday and was scheduled to return about 2:30 p.m. Last contact with the plane occurred about 12:17 p.m. Teams from Civil Air Patrol wings from Maryland and Pennsylvania began searching around 10:30 p.m., said spokesman Maj. Wes LePre.

A Cessna 150 on a sightseeing flight over Hagerstown landed safely in a field off Castle Hill Road just before 10 a.m. Friday when the pilot reported a power problem. "The landing was purely precautionary," said Carolyn Motz, manager of the Washington County Regional Airport. Washington County sheriff's deputies identified the pilot as Bradley Roberson of 2 W. Irvin Ave., Hagerstown, and a passenger as Thomas Edward Hams III of 20341 Jefferson Blvd., Hagerstown. No one was hurt and the plane wasn't damaged, Motz said.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. -- They were riding John Deeres, Cub Cadets and Kohlers, but riders such as Kyle Adolini, William Gerhart and Jim Kiefer were not cutting grass or pulling little trailers of mulch for flower beds Thursday night at the Franklin County Fair. Instead, drivers young and not-so-young were trying to coax as much power, torque and traction as possible out of sometimes highly modified garden tractors to pull a 6,500-pound sled. The garden tractor pull attracted scores of riders and their machines in several classes to the fairground arena.

FREDERICK, Md. - A pilot who allegedly flew into restricted air space Saturday night came within 71/2 nautical miles of Camp David, a Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said Sunday. The U.S. Secret Service and FAA were investigating the incident Sunday. According to spokespeople for the agencies, the pilot, who landed at Frederick (Md.) Municipal Airport, had not been charged. FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said a Cessna 172 was detected in temporary restricted air space about 10:30 p.m. Saturday near Camp David.

Thurman "T.S. " Alphin, a pilot who has logged more than 7,000 hours in the air, knows how quickly a plane can spiral out of control. Alphin was up in a plane with a friend and had just handed over the controls to his companion when the plane went into a spin. With only a few seconds to react, his friend regained control of the plane 50 feet above the ground, said Alphin, a retired aircraft mechanic. Other Washington County pilots, like Alphin, have had experiences that convinced them that flying is a serious business.

Fleming-Johnston Jennifer Leigh Johnston and Daniel Roby Fleming III were married Saturday, June 27, 1998, at Herrington Harbour Marina Resort in Friendship, Md. The bride is the daughter of Fred Johnston of Hagerstown and the late Natalie Johnston. The bridegroom is the son of Daniel and Maxine Fleming of Clear Spring. The bride is a 1989 graduate of Clear Spring High School and a 1991 graduate of Hagerstown Junior College. She plans to attend Shepherd College, in Shepherdstown, W.Va.

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. - Molly Land was sure of only two things while her potential game-tying 3-pointer was in the air Thursday night during Shepherd University's game against West Liberty. First, she hadn't made a shot all night. Second, that this one was going in. Land's 26-footer falling out of bounds tied the game at 80 and helped lift the Rams to a 94-87 win, helping to keep Shepherd undefeated in West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play. "I was just trying to get it up there," said Land, a 5-foot-11 junior guard.