Since my club lost our flying site last year, I have been fortunate enough to be able to join in and fly with the informal Roseburg control line flying group. It is there I really got to know Pete Benning. Prior to that, I had only met him at a few Fun Flies. Pete was a knowledgeable builder and flier even though he did not get involved in the contest events. He was always willing to go out of his way to help and share information. He was a true a gentleman and loss to the flying community.
Bob Lewis, one of the Umpqua Valley fliers (located in Roseburg, Oregon), is one of several of the Umpqua fliers who, at Pete’s passing, immediately rallied at Pete’s home to lend assistance to his wife and family. Bob then wrote a little bit about Pete and his passing, that he sent to Pete’s immediate control line acquaintances. Here is the essence of Bob’s note:
Our dear friend and great control line enthusiast, Pete Benning succumbed to his cancer and passed away suddenly and painlessly at his home Tuesday April 29, with his wife Susan at his side. She and Pete were so happy he made it to their 50th wedding anniversary in February, in spite of the odds that he would not live beyond last November. Pete is survived by two sons.
Pete had rallied over the last couple of weeks and was looking forward to getting out again and visiting everyone at our next scheduled flying session (Last Thursday) even though he was tired from attending our “hanger party” the previous week. Pete had not been eating much but at the “hanger party” he ate a sandwich and one of his favorites, a jelly roll. He even took another jelly roll home for later.
Pete was one of the more avid control liners I have known. He absolutely loved the hobby and was very expert at it. He did not fly competitively and did not aspire to. Among his strengths was his excellent building and finishing skills. Pete specialized in "I-Beam" construction. He built very light models and was able to get a Fox .15 to fly a bigger airplane than just about anybody else. He loved the Fox .15 and Fox .35. His all-time favorite airplane might have been his Fox .35 powered Ares. But Pete also loved biplanes and last year completed a beautiful full-bodied version of the 38 Special powered by, what else but a Fox .35. He built a really neat little profile Beech Stagger Wing powered by a Fox .07. He also designed and built smaller spin-off versions of the Ares for his Fox .15's. Pete loved to help new converts to control line get up and going. We still have some of his things waiting, for the next novice who needs the basic equipment to get started. Some time ago, Pete divided up the greater share of his holdings among his close flying buddies. Most of us have a "Pete" airplane or engine to fly and remember him by.
Pete had previously been a model railroad enthusiast and had a large amount of equipment which he donated to the model railroad club in Eugene. And, although never very tempted to get into Radio Control, Pete donated his ride-on lawn mower to Umpqua Valley Modelers, one of our local R/C clubs that most of our control-line flyers belong to. Pete was casually interested in free flight and had fond memories of one that he built in his youth. Last fall he built another one. He built a 1/2A Dakota free flight which he flew at two of the Willamette Modelers meets up near Albany. He thoroughly enjoyed the Albany free flight meets and looked forward to attending again this fall.
Bob Lewis