Captain Henry L Buck Retirement Flight '95~ NWA MD-80 MSP-SMF-MSP

Finally found it this and uploaded! Dad retired from Northwest Airlines on April 13th, 1995, the day before his 60th birthday. He began his commercial aviation career in the mid 60's, starting in ATL on the DC-3 with Southern Airways, continuing to the Martin 4-0-4 and on the Captain on the DC-9. He bid on both fatal Southern flights, the Huntington Marshall State FLT 932 and New Hope, GA FLT 242. Outbid by seniority on both, he lost friends and colleagues those days and dealt with "survivor's guilt" many years after. The Deregulation Act hit the smaller airlines hard. Following Southern through the formation of Republic through mergers with Hughes Airwest and North Central in 1979, he remained on the DC-9, first in ATL and then eventually commuting to MEM via jumpseat or in his 1948 Ryan Navion from Conway, SC after moving back to his home state to restore his ancestral farm in 1984. At one time Republic Airlines was the largest in the US by the number of airports served. The flying mallard mascot, Herman, was a familiar sight in the skies in those days. 1986 brought a huge change, when Northwest Orient bought Republic for $884 million. It was not an easy merger, but Dad stuck with it, eventually moving up from the DC-9 to the MD-80 as Captain. One of the easiest and most fun Captains to fly with, Buck was a favorite among his crewmates, who always were delighted to draw a trip schedule with him. His number one concern for safety first, in both the aircraft and the hotel, always making sure everyone was "barred and bolted." He drew fire back in 1977, making the front page of the AJC mere months after the New Hope tragedy, for going against ATC and opting to fly around a heavy line of severe weather, rather than go through. He still landed ahead of schedule, and Southern issued a statement, standing by his decision as Captain to put safety ahead of any outside pressure in his cockpit. 1995 came, and as much as he looked forward to retirement, he missed it terribly once done. He did, however, continue to enjoy general aviation afterwards and found more time to pursue his hobbies of fine art, mostly aviation and wildlife, in addition to building and restoration of fine banjos. His most famous client was Earl Scruggs, who he befriended in the early 70's. Also a pilot, they shared their mutual interests and talents, with Dad building a neck and resonator for the famous Gibson Granada as well as gifting a miniature banjo to his friend in the later 90's to play at home during his recovery from emergency open heart surgery. It became a favorite of Earl's, well-known to other Nashville musicians who came to his "pick'n parties", staying within reach of his easy chair until his passing in 2012. The unique friendship between the Buck and Scruggs family remained after Dad's passing in 2007, with Earl speaking to his friend by us holding the phone to his ear in his final days, ending with the passing of their oldest son, Gary in December 2021. Captain Henry Buck flew West for his final check on May 12, 2007, slipping the surly bonds of Earth to putout his hand, and touch the face of God. He is dearly missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing this fine, Southern gentleman.
PS~ Stay tuned to the end to see the commercial Dad and I shot for the flight school I attended a few years later!