NIGHT FLIGHTS
According to Gene Kelley the Klu Klux Klan was active in this area and made contact with Jerome ‘Bogus’ Johnson about using one of his farm fields adjacent to the landing field for a KKK rally. This was ironic since, in addition to the Klan’s tenant of white supremacy, they were also opposed to Catholicism and the members of the Johnson family were devout Catholics. The Klan also was known to burn crosses which could be observed on different locations by the citizens of Cumberland. This activity could be seen on sites such as Irons Mountain and the ridge tops adjacent to Wiley Ford, now the site of the large maintenance hangar of the Greater Cumberland Regional Airport. Both locations afforded easy viewing by the citizens of Cumberland.
According to the Cumberland Times-News the Klan had hired Torque Landis and Wilbur Gaither for aerial night flights with an electrically lighted red cross located beneath the fuselage and wings of the J-1 Standard aircraft owned by Landis. Power for the lighted sign was from several large storage batteries secured in the front cockpit.
An OX-5 powered J-1 Standard bi-plane.
The Government landing field was located in a low section near the Potomac River, bordered on the north by a hill and on the west by Knobley Mountain. As a pilot, imagine accomplishing night landings on the east-west runway on less than 2000 feet of runway length on the field that is now the Long-Smith farm. That site is an extremely dark area and had none of the present surrounding night illumination. Aside from anyone’s feelings concerning the repugnant KKK, Landis and Gaither obviously displayed courage and flying skills in performing those night aerial flights over the Cumberland area. They made several takeoffs and landings from this small area devoid of any lighting assistance or a natural horizon to maintain control of their aircraft. Luck and good visual piloting capabilities enabled the two to overcome this potentially fatal endeavor. This weather scenario could be compared to the fatal crash of John F. Kennedy, Jr., who was attempting to fly in a situation similar to what Landis and Gaither experienced in a long ago time. The lack of a natural horizon is a dangerous condition, one that can lead an inexperienced or less capable pilot to fatal consequences.
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Wings Over Cumberland 