Virginia pilot wins AOPA 1999 sweepstakes and the ‘Aero SUV’ 206
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| Phil Boyer and Carl, Lori, Cory, and Heather Rice |
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A working pilot based in Virginia’s Tidewater country along the Chesapeake Bay is the winner of AOPA’s 1999 “Aero SUV” Sweepstakes and the grand prize Cessna 206 restored as the ultimate sport utility vehicle.
Carl Rice, 41, of rural Reedville some 90 miles east of Richmond, received the one-of-a-kind airplane from AOPA President Phil Boyer at a surprise event Sunday, February 6, at quaint Hummel Airfield, a local pilot favorite and nearby 2,200-foot strip ideal for showing off the “Aero SUV’s” short-field performance.
The winner works as a fish spotter pilot for Omega Protein, Inc., a Reedville fishery. Flying a 1980 Cessna 172RG Cutlass up to 25 miles offshore, he directs the company’s fleet to schools of menhaden, an industrial species harvested for its oil.
AOPA’s rough-and-ready custom 206 is just the right airplane for the 2,500-foot Reedville grass strip for fish spotters, just one block from Rice’s waterfront home.
Rice, joined by wife Lori, daughter Heather, and son Cory, was also presented with $1,000 worth of camping gear for their airborne outdoor adventure vehicle.
This year’s AOPA sweepstakes will award a uniquely upgraded 1987 Mooney 201 renewed as AOPA’s 2000 “ Millennium Mooney.”
February 8, 2000
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