“I’m I life-long airplane junkie turned air traffic controller. When I was younger, and really even now, model aviation was my outlet to safely and cheaply try ideas, to have something that flew, and to keep my dream alive. The value of our little aircraft is staggering. Astronauts, engineers, mechanics, commercial and general aviation pilots, inventors, nerds, and even air traffic controllers all got their start in aviation by getting their little airplane stuck in a tree. It’s hard to say what the state of aviation in this country would be if we hadn’t had the freedom to explore it in an inexpensive and simple way.”