This week’s Plane & Pilot Photo Of The Week comes from Brian Jenkins, a backcountry aficionado from Southern Indiana, who flies a Cessna unlike any that most folks have seen before. If you have a hard time ID’ing it, don’t worry too much. We had to ask after failing to figure it out ourselves.
With its straight tail and taildragger swagger, Jenkins’ Wichita beauty looks like a mini Cessna 185, but it is in fact a 1956 Cessna 172 with a tailwheel conversion. As you might know, Cessna didn’t sweep the tail and add the rear “Omni-Vision” window until the early ’60s, so Jenkins’ very early 172 has neither of those more modern features, which works for us.
The first shot of the plane in aerial formation was taken by Kyle Newsom—great work, Kyle! The shot on a gravel bar (again, in Southern Indiana) was shot by the owner. Thanks, Brian, for sharing these great pics. And in case you haven’t gotten enough, check out Brian’s video, taken by a drone, of a near-miss on the runway that got our heart going!
