God Help Us, Here Comes Frances

Like the rest of Florida, ANN publisher Jim Campbell in Winter Haven and editor Pete Combs in Fort Myers are battening down the hatches in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Frances, an especially dangerous storm forecasted to hit Florida sometime on Friday.

Associate Editor Juan Jimenez, who himself waved as Frances passed just north of his home in Puerto Rico, will be in charge of editorial decisions, coffee-making and cat-wrangling in our absence. ANN contributors from around the country are also pitching in to give us shelter from the storm.

Juan has already proven himself a clutch player -- during Hurricane Charley. While both Campbell and Combs were without power, sweltering in the sultry post-Charley weather, Juan was plugging away, keeping you up to the minute on the latest developments in aviation and aerospace.

For readers in Frances's path, we urge you to move or at least secure your aircraft. Remember what happened to the tenants of Charlotte County Regional Airport in Punta Gorda last month? Early indications tend to suggest that the incoming storm could be far worse than what we experienced last month.

Otherwise, be safe and we'll see you when the lights come back on.

FMI: www.aero-news.net