Look up in the sky! It's not a bird.....no, it's a plane and it's piloted by Bill Hartsell, N3WSH. Bill will be using the callsign W6Y as the first-time aeronautical rover for this year's Route 66 On the Air special event. When hams get on the air on September 6th, he'll be in the air, operating as this year's first-time bonus station through September 9th.

Bill, a retired US Air Force pilot from Oklahoma, will be flying about 7,000 feet high above the traffic on the nation's Mother Road, making the trip from Chicago to Santa Monica and making QSOs with licensed hams on the ground who are near his route, which he will travel both eastbound and westbound during the event.

He will be calling QRZ on 146.490 MHz simplex. If you get him, it's a bonus. Either way, you can still get a Clean Sweep chasing the other stations.

The 26th annual special event, organized by the Citrus Belt Amateur Radio Club, will remain active for a few more days after Bill's activations, coming in for a landing itself on the 14th.