N814BM

"Four-Bravo-Mike" is a 1967 Cessna 172-H owned and flown by Bob McDaniel

"4BM" was born in September 1966 as N3721F and spent its first six years in the rental fleet at Opelousas Flying Service in Opelousas, Louisiana. In 1972, it began three years as a "company" plane in Mississippi before transferring to an individual owner back in Louisiana. After 3 more years in Louisiana, it moved to Texas for a couple of years before making its way to a new owner in Ohio and the addition of a Horton STOL kit. In summer 1992, it flew to the Flying Dutchman in Belleville, Illinois where it flew from the grass for the next 15 years.

In September 2007, 21F came back to the hard surface at St. Louis Downtown Airport and began a transformation that will hopefully return it to "like-new" condition. An N-number change, some minor corrosion control, and a fresh custom paint scheme applied by Brandis Aircraft Services in Taylorville, IL, transformed the aircraft to its condition in the photo above. (The lower portion of the aircraft appears gray in the photo but is really a metallic pale blue.) Avionics changes and interior refurbishment still lie ahead.

The "before" photo below was taken just before the transformation began.