From west to east and kingdom to kingdom, you're listening to the Diz Unplugged Connecting with Walth podcast.

Connecting with Walt is brought to you by Dreams Unlimited Travel,

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Hey there, hi, there, and welcome to episode 263 of the Dizumplug, Connecting with Walt Podcast.

I am your host and Diz historian Michael Bowling.

And I am joined by my co-host, Mary Cho Malato Willie.

Mary Cho, welcome back to connecting with Walt.

Well, hi, Michael. Thank you for having me back. I always love listening to you and participating.

Thank you. Well, we love having you on. In this episode, we are taking a look at a little known aspect of Disney history. We are all

familiar with Walt's love of trains, but you may not know that Walt also had a love of planes and

flight in general. So joining us to talk about Walt and his planes are Mark Malone, who is the son of Charles A. Malone, Jr., who

was Walt's personal pilot and started the Walt Disney Aviation Department in 1962.

From 1979 until its final flight for Walt Disney Productions, Mark served as a pilot flying

with his dad until Charles retired in

1982, and Mark continued his captain on the Gulf Stream. Later on, Mark was asked by then

Disney CEO Michael Eisner to become chief pilot in Orlando when the Gulf Stream's base was

relocated from Burbank, but he chose to remain near his

family in Southern California. Also joining us as Dexter Francis, who was a former

Imagineer, who created the Walt's Airplane's Facebook group and has researched the history of

Walt's plane. He is also the author of Building Disney's Dream, the Little Company That Could,

which is the story of Disney's relationship with Arrow Development,

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