7 minute read
Eagle Eyes
The first woman to graduate from the Naval Test Pilot School, Captain Colleen Nevius, finally catches up on her reading in her new home on the shores of Little Sebago Lake.
What can you
see from your screened porch?
It’s a breezy day on the lake. The American flag and the Maine flag are waving on my island.
What’s your island called?
My kids called it Ghost Island. We first saw it when my kids went with us to Aimhi Lodge from 2001 to 2005. But it’s really Moon Island. From the sky it must once have been crescent-shaped.
You have that extra dimension—only a pilot would say that.
We think it was a man-made island when the lodge property was being created originally. All the extra dirt and rocks were put there. I’ve got a little footbridge that connects us to the island.
With the world, sky, and stars to choose from, how did Maine win the lottery?
For years we’ve visited friends in Brunswick around Labor Day for an annual lobster feed. We knew that Aimhi had gone out of business back in the mid-2000s, and I knew they’d sold it to a developer and subdivided it. Back then in our careers we weren’t in a position to do anything about it. But we tucked it away in our minds.
In 2018 we wondered again, whatever happened to Aimhi Lodge? It was such a magical place. We drove down from Brunswick and saw the island, the footbridge, the view—and the for-sale sign. We knocked on the door of the old lodge. The guy who ran the lodge back in the day, he and his wife were the sellers. We decided to make a run at it. Because lake restrictions didn’t allow us to build a summer-only place, we ended up building something a bit more grand than we’d planned. By Thanksgiving it was ours! This year is our first winter here.
BY COLIN W. SARGENT
Where were you living just before?
A couple blocks from the Pentagon.
No wonder you’re here. The Pentagon doesn’t have a screened porch. (Though there’s a nice helipad.)
This screened porch is where we spend eighty percent of our waking hours.
How have you furnished it?
With a hickory table and chairs that used to reside at the lodge.
You mentioned Thanksgiving. Do you have many wild turkeys out there?
Oh, yes. They’ve come out of the woods and into the road, which is evidence of the brightness of the birds. We also have hummingbirds.
Do you feed the hummingbirds?
Yes. We’ve increased their nectar because we know they’re about to make their big annual flight to Mexico. They go there just like the monarchs. In the spring, they’ll be back in Maine.
Two über-pilots. Where are you going to keep your seaplane?
The little cove that’s formed by the island and parking place is the perfect place for a float plane. But it’s usually better to have a friend with the plane than to own one yourself.
Where do you and your husband (Astronaut William Readdy) go in Maine for a night out?
We don’t do dinner out much. We’d rather have dinner here with friends. But we like Harraseeket Lunch, Petite Jacqueline in the Old Port, the Front Room in the East End. We’ve had snacks at a Sea Dogs game. I love the stadium. I just have a hard time turning into a Red Sox fan since I’ve been rooting for the Nationals.
What’s the farthest away from Maine you’ve ever been?
When I was testing, I flew Marine H-46 helicopters in Hawaii for a week. I’ve flown H-46s and H-53s in Norway, Puerto Rico, South America. In the reserves I got to fly a King Air in the UK a little bit. I was aircraft commander in 46, 53, and King Air. I’ve flown probably thirty or forty different aircraft types.
I saw online that while they haven’t yet made an action figure of you as the first woman Navy test pilot, there is a great painting of you in your flight suit in a museum. How’d that happen?
I had artists reach out to me and ask if they could do that piece because the Women in Aviation group was having an art contest. I thought he did a pretty neat job. I think it’s going to the Patuxent River Naval Air Museum, at least on loan, for their show: “Women in Aviation: Exploring Their Diverse Contributions to NAS Patuxent River and Beyond.”
Then there’s that picture of you in the National Air and Space Museum at the Smithsonian. I remember walking right up to it and looking eye-to-eye at you.
It’s probably in the attic. The Smithsonian has so many pieces and shows that rotate. I was there when they did an exhibit of the many women in helicopter aviation.
Do your children fly?
Our oldest son is an MH-53E minesweeper pilot. Right now he’s training students in fixed wing.
H-53s! I can feel the vibration from here.
On the inside they feel like a Cadillac.
What were your worst thirty seconds in the air?
I won’t name names, but [I was the co-pilot when] it happened while nearly running out of gas as we flew an H-46 back and forth between two carriers [who’d started to steam away from each other]. We had to switch to one [of two] jet engines. I almost thought I was going swimming that day.
When I became a helicopter test pilot, I remembered that day when we studied and implemented a new flotation system on the stub wings of the H-46. The Marine versions had them. I made sure it was on the Navy version.
I’m sure many Navy flight crews appreciate your doing that.
Not everybody liked that. It meant more work to make the transition [across the fleet].
Has the measure saved any lives yet? A thrashing H-46 used to sink in as little as eleven seconds.
The couple of guys who got the extra minutes probably liked it.
How has a life of flying changed you?
Aviation still plays a big part in my dream life. I was only on active duty for eleven years flying helicopters, but it’s very much with me. I go flying a lot in my dreams.
Your father was a naval officer too, correct?
My dad was a Navy pilot. He flew electronic-warfare aircraft; also the “Spad”—he was an A-1 pilot. In Vietnam he worked on developing electronic warfare, so he commanded a squadron that included E-1s and the A-3—the “Whale.” But he always thought of himself as a Spad pilot.
What’s the strangest question that’s ever been asked of you as a pilot?
Once I was asked, “Are you nervous that your husband’s up in space?” Nervous? I’m jealous!
How about a zinger from someone who was jealous of you?
The one that shocked me: “You only graduated because you dated an instructor.” This from a person who should have known better. He should have known better in front of a crowd that was happy to believe him.
Tom Wolfe has fun with understated pilot talk in
The Right Stuff. You guys are “blocks of ice.” Can
you give us an example?
Karen [Thornton, a fellow trailblazing H-46 pilot] and I were flying in the fog in Norway. We had some press aboard who thought it would be cute if we posed for a picture. In-flight. But at first they didn’t realize we were both flying. They sent up a message: “We understand there’s a woman pilot onboard.” Karen sent back: “Which one would you like to talk to?”
What are you doing this second?
I’ve just finished my second cup of coffee, which is my limit. I’m reading a legal thriller on my Kindle. People are raving about it, but for me the jury is still out. n
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