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Aviation101 remembers Bill Cloud on an autumn camping flight

Josh Flowers and Chelsea Smith return to the grass runway at Lee Bottom in the Sling their late friend helped them build.

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Aviation101 Story of November 8, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? The channel's weekly summary: what went up this week, what is drawing views now, and where the channel stands among similar channels.

Autumn Airplane Camping (and the loss of a friend)

Video summary

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0:16Josh dedicates the film to Bill Cloud, their late friend and airplane-building mentor.
4:12Back in Kentucky, Josh and Chelsea pack camping supplies and calculate the airplane's gross weight.
6:44Chelsea briefs the takeoff safety plan before flying toward Bowman Field in Louisville.
12:20They meet Chelsea's parents, eat pizza and bring Millie aboard.
15:15The flight follows the Ohio River and autumn foliage toward Lee Bottom's grass runway.

Bill Cloud's work is part of the airplane Josh Flowers and Chelsea Smith fly: the fuel tanks, camera mounts, control surfaces and thousands of rivets. Aviation101's only new upload, "Autumn Airplane Camping (and the loss of a friend)", carries that connection into a trip they had long wanted to make.

Filmed in late October, the journey takes them from western Kentucky to Bowman Field in Louisville, where they meet Chelsea's parents, collect pizza and bring their dog Millie aboard. Then they follow the Ohio River toward Lee Bottom Flying Field, with autumn foliage below and a grass runway waiting. Chelsea calls camping there something that has been on her aviation bucket list for a long time.

Alongside the flying, Josh remembers the mentor who laid out their tools, opened the build manual to the morning's page and made repetitive riveting work memorable. In the description, he recalls Bill's invitations for Friday beers and pizza, and regrets the Catalina flight they had talked about but never took. "Thank you for being a teacher, a mentor, and a friend to us," Josh says.

The film has reached roughly 121,000 views and is comfortably the channel's busiest upload right now. The Namibia finale and October's maintenance film also continue drawing viewers. Subscribers held steady over the week, while today's viewing is slightly below the channel's usual daily level.

Viewers are returning to memories of Bill in the build series, particularly his enthusiasm at the start and the patient guidance he gave Josh and Chelsea.

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