MESA, AZ — A full-circle moment, right here in the Valley, for a man re-united with a plane he flew decades ago. Sean Fowler was walking around Falcon Field Airport when something caught his eye.
"I noticed an aircraft which looked similar to the type of aircraft my father flew when he was a teenager,” said Sean Fowler.
The flight instructor sent his dad a photo. Sean Fowler then shared a screenshot, with ABC15, showing his dad's reaction.
"I saw the tail number and thought, this isn't the kind of plane I flew son... This is the plane that I flew, 6275 Lima,” said Steve Fowler.
A friend helped Sean Fowler track down the plane's current owner all these decades later.
"I read his message. I couldn't believe it. It just kind out of the blue,” said Roy Hyatt.
Hyatt was quick to welcome Steve Fowler in the cockpit.
"I just think it's really cool to meet new pilots; old pilots and I just feel blessed to be a part of it,” added Hyatt.
Steve Fowler, and his family, traveled from Tucson to Mesa to see the two-seater. Steve's mind glided back to 1974 when he was in flight school.
"I think of an idyllic, young, and care-free teenager with this whole life ahead of him. I had just turned 18 years old,” added Steve Fowler.
He says this type of plane was the one everyone wanted to fly.
“It just goes, goes and goes. It's not like a big lumbering plane with long wings,” added Steve Fowler.
The flight for Steve Fowler is like a bookend. His first flight, in the same plane, was when he was just 18 years old. Steve is now 65. A lot has happened in those 47 years from getting married to and having kids. He says his ride at Falcon Field was certainly an adventure.
"I appreciate Roy Hyatt so much. He won't even let me pay him for the fuel. But, it's been a wonderful experience,” added Steve Fowler.