fact, Bruce says, it was a love of this
type aircraft that influenced his father
to become an aerologist, a wide open
field in a world just entering the age of
flight.
Aerology is thestudyofweather in the
total vertical extent of our atmosphere
as opposed to meteorology which
is concerned with weather near the
earth’s surface. Aerologists must use
balloons and air craft to study weather.
For 45 years, Bruce’s father, Francis,
was a key figure in the development of
meteorological services in the United
States. In fact, the Navy’s weather
service was only six months older than
his commission. He first served as a
line naval officer and later as chief of
the U S Weather Bureau, forerunner
of the National Weather Service. The
various types of lighter-than-air craft are
affected significantly by the weather as
proven by the
Hindenburg
. Therefore,
it was critical to be able to accurately
read weather conditions prior to flights.
To do this, Bruce’s father flew Naval
weather observatory planes.
“He used to buzz our house when
it was time for my mother to go to the
airfield and pick him up,” Bruce recalls
with a laugh.
Rear Admiral William A Moffett,
father of the Navy’s rigid airship
program, called Bruce’s father, “The
best damn meteorologist in the world”.
Admiral Moffett was one of 73 who died
when the airship
Akron
went down over
the Atlantic in 1933. The
Shenandoah
went down over Ohio and the
Macon
went down in the Pacific, off the coast
of California, all storm related. The only
airship that did not meet with disaster
was the
Los Angeles
. It was ultimately
dismantled and all the officers of the
naval air station received a picture of
it mounted on a canvas made from the
hull of the ship and framed by metal
taken from its framework. The picture
was passed on to Bruce by his father.
Bruce’s father remains his hero.
Born in 1895, a native of Indiana, the
senior Reichelderfer was a graduate of
Northwestern University and received
his initial meteorological training at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
He earned his heavier-than-air wings
in Florida and while he was stationed
at Lakehurst, he qualified as a pilot for
balloons, non-rigid airships (blimps)
and rigid airships.
Bruce, a graduate of the Naval
Academy, class of 1952, regrets to
this day his decision not to follow in
his father’s footsteps with a naval
career. He acknowledges the difficulty
in balancing family life with military life
but wishes now he had tried harder
to do both. Instead, he became an
engineer with C & P. He is the father
of two, a son and a daughter. He is as
proud of them as he is his father.
Bruce and his wife, Betty, came to
Smith Mountain Lake in 1982. He knew
he wanted to spend his remaining years
near the water. Bruce and Betty met by
chance while they were both employed
with C & P in Washington, D C. He says
he couldn’t have built a better wife
(or life) if he had ordered the pieces
himself. Both are in their 80s now and
they still hold hands.
Along with their life together, they
relish the 360 degree view of the
Lake they enjoy from their lakeside
deck.“I wanted water and she wanted
mountains,” Bruce says, “Here we have
both.”
The 746-foot shoreline of their point
lot is about 60 feet short of the length
of the
Hindenburg
.
Reichelderfer Continued...
Oct 3
- Radio interview with Tim Ernandes on WSLK
Lake Radio 880
Oct 5
- Dogtoberfest with Saint Francis Service Dogs
8232 Enon Dr., Roanoke, 10 am -4 pm
Oct 12
- K9 Walk for a Cure, Peaks of Otter Winery
Opens 9 am
TBA
- 4H Club
Closed Event
Other events TBA
Book Signing Locations
Maxeen
Vashro Wyatt
Meet the Author
Illustrated by Adele Shaffer
Photo by Phyllis Giobbi
FOR MORE
INFORMATION CALL
207-239-4240
SINK A FEW!
40 Brewery Drive, Hardy, VA 24101
(next to Westlake Cinema)
540.420.0476
|
Handcrafted lagers & ales on tap and beer to-go. Also featuring SML’s own “Dam
Lager.” 6-pack/Cases of 12 oz. cans and Half Gallon/Gallon Growler fills available.
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Thursdays
3-9p
Fridays
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Discover Smith Mountain Lake
Fall 2013
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