KEYSER, W.Va. — With more than 150,000 members worldwide and 7,500 in his division, Bill Pancake of Keyser was more than surprised when he received notification he was going to be inducted into the Experimental Aircraft Association Hall of Fame.

“I was kind of overwhelmed,” Pancake said. “I had heard of it happening to other people, but not to me. I was excited.”

His wife, Saundra, said that when he went to the EAA Hall of Fame and museum in Oshkosh, Wis., she was crying and his knees were shaking.

Bill’s work with airplanes began early, as he received his first plane ride in 1946, but had a fascination with them much longer than that. However, it was that first ride that guaranteed he was “hooked permanently from that point on.”

He said as he learned and did more with aviation, he found some of his biggest interests were involved, including woodworking, meteorology and communications work.

His first solo flight came in 1956 on his 16th birthday, and he holds a pilot certification, the U.S. version of a pilot’s license. He has served as a technical adviser and flight adviser for the EAA, helping people who construct their planes to understand the safety regulations as well as the designs that work best. He holds a Federal Aviation Administration inspection certificate and is a certified flight instructor.

His job at Westvaco paper mill for 42 years supplied money for both his family and his hobby, Bill said.

Saundra joked that she “always knew airplanes were his first love. As long as I stay in the top 10, I’m happy.”

However, aviation has become a family activity, as Saundra first met Bill at an airport and for more than 30 years, she has continued to join him at the EAA AirVenture aviation celebration in Oshkosh.

Bill said his daughter learned how to operate a plane, though she never pursued her pilot’s certificate. His grandsons Michael Boggs, 20, and Curtis Boggs, 16, have both had their first solo flight. He joked that even his middle grandson, Robert Boggs, regularly goes to the Cumberland airport, but it is to race cars, not to fly airplanes.

Bill said that he was surprised at earning the honor because he knew the sort of scrutiny that any nominee goes through in order to be placed in the Hall of Fame and the amount of work a person has to do through the EAA in order to be inducted.

Saundra said that she could not believe it when she heard the announcement.

“It was a great honor,” she said. “Very humbling. When you think about the people that it could have been and to have Bill, someone from Keyser, win, it was, to me, very, very humbling.”

She did add that she felt he is very deserving of the award.

Contact Sarah Moses at smoses@times-news.com.