Thanks, Jacob, this is a grand idea. Think I'll seize on the opportunity to gush...
With so many people of character in Dogfight it's difficult, as Pedrinho said, to narrow a personal list to just a few. So I won't;
Jasmine/420 - As good a player as this game will ever boast, and an even better person, Jas is always willing to mentor younger players, particularly the few female players - a number which it seems to me is growing, and happily so - and as we've grown to know each other my respect and affection have grown exponentially.
Coop - What's left to be said about Lt. DJ that hasn't already been said a hundred times? He and Dent are not only the twin aortas that power the heart of M.O.M, they function as the same for the entire Dogfight community. I'm proud to call them comrades, prouder still to call them friends.
Dentinhead - see above. Dent is a model of self-deprecation despite his astonishing skill. No ego, just genuine heart. To know Dent is to love Dent.
Mad - Anthony; the soul of integrity but without the humorlessness that sometimes accompanies it. A lovely chap of stand-up moral fiber and tremendous humor.
Ronnie Biggs - One of the great bits of good fortune that have befallen me in this game has been coming to know this remarkable man. He's played long and fiercely under various names, we got off to a tumultuous start, and the lesson I've learned from him about not trusting first impressions or jumping too quickly to too sure conclusions has been enormously important in life as in Dogfight. Had we not worked our way through the rough spots I would not now be privileged to know the vibrant, questioning mind and indefatigable spirit of someone whose friendship and respect I value immeasurably.
Pedrinho - No, not just because he listed me! Ped has the gift of a gentle, open heart combined with a uniquely clear eyed view of the truth of a situation when all others around him (including me) are behaving like dopes. He's also that rarest of things these days, a devoted, doting family man. Worldly wise, loving, funny, good natured...if that doesn't warrant a gold plane I don't know what does!
SheiBe Kopf - A guy couldn't wish for a better co-conspirator than Chet. A game couldn't wish for a better representative. If I dropped dead tonight I know M.O.M would hum on without a blip with Herr Kopf at the helm. Chet, Coop and Brian all sold me on the fact that you can, in reality, make real friends in a daffy little video game.
Luna - If Dogfight possesses one player who fills me with hope for a bright future - in the world, not in the game - this gifted, articulate, introspective, sensitive young person is that player. Her expansive imagination is infectious. How many players do you know who'll request to be shot down then just "see what might develop"? Walking up a mountain to "see what happens" in our little game is microcosmic of what we can expect from Luna. I expect to be bragging up the fact that I knew her when.
How does a list like this get posted without acknowledging the brilliant humor of Bopes (humor, if inventive, goes a longer distance with me than almost anything. Bopes has it by the buckets full.)...or Big Tex (as articulate, erudite and sage as a friend and comrade could be)...or Kevy, the falcon all falcons should look to as an example, or my Brit brother from another mother Flying Muck...
They each enrich this game and my world every day.
Paul Mantz, Jr. ... your value extends so far beyond the boundaries of Dogfight. All the people who've posted here deserve praise, as do all those I've listed in this post...and every one of us can learn something about strength, courage, compassion, humor and kindness from you. You have the endless generosity, balance, beneficence, insight we all should aspire to. If there's one "gold plane" to be awarded it's yours, hands down.
Thanks again for launching this, Jacob. A Karma click up from me, my Moderator compadre.