– Experienced pilot –
Ford was flying a Ryan PT-22 two-place open cockpit trainer, one of many hundreds manufactured during World War II to train US military pilots.
Built in 1942, with a 160-horsepower radial engine and a top speed of 131 miles per hour, it was retired by the military after the war, and eventually fell into disrepair, according to a 2008 feature in AOPA Pilot magazine.
It was acquired in 1992 by an Illinois design engineer as a restoration project, and went on to win the prize for best antique airplane at Oshkosh, the world’s biggest air show, in 1998.
It went on to be sold to a new owner shortly afterwards, and is currently registered in the name of a Delaware company, according to FAA records.
Ford took his first flying lessons in college, gave up due to lack of money, but got back into it after becoming an established film star. He has been the owner of several planes, from two-seat bush aircraft to corporate jets.
Tom Haines of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), who has flown with Ford, told CNN the actor was “a very skilled pilot and very safety conscious,” describing him as “meticulous.”
Last June, Ford broke his leg on the set of the new “Star Wars” movie at Pinewood Studios outside London. Filming began in May last year on the new episode of the iconic franchise, directed by blockbuster filmmaker J.J. Abrams.
Ford is back as smuggler Han Solo, Mark Hamill will return as Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker and Carrie Fisher, 57, reprises the role of Princess Leia.
The veteran actor remains one of the biggest names in Hollywood, in a glittering career stretching back decades.
As well as the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” movies, he has had a string of movie hits — and misses — from the acclaimed “Witness” and “The Fugitive” to the panned “Hollywood Homicide” and “Random Hearts.”
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