September 1st will be the end of an era and a terribly sad day for all of SL. Today I received news about the upcoming closure of Abbotts Aerodrome, one of the true iconic places in Second Life.
More than 7 years old, Abbotts was found in January 2007 by Apotheus Silverman and Cubey Terra. The place is featured in many in-world and real-life publications, online and on print. Cubey’s skydiving equipment is used all over Second Life and so are many of the vehicles that are sold at Abbotts.
The aerodrome itself is the heart of the western part of Sansara, Second Life’s oldest continent.
I first received the news through the Second Life community blogs, but there must be more information about it. The reasons behind closing the airport are unsure yet, but it seems to be either financial or disagreement with Linden Labs.
Link to the blogpost:
Link to Cubey Terra’s own announcement on closing:
http://www.cubeyterra.com/2011/08/all-good-things/
Abbotts Aerodrome can be found here:
Liv 
Yikes! This is terrible… or maybe Terra-ble… news! 🙂 .
As Liv points out, Cubey Terra and Abbotts Aerodrome hold a legendary role in Second Life.
Recently Lindens installed a sizable ‘Southern Passage’ waterway that links Bay City to the greater Sansara Seas that lie to the East. The Abbotts Aerodrome sim was a critical link in that passage, and many of us jumped up and down thinking the new Linden expansion could benefit and unite – all of SL’s sailors and aviators.
Although I don’t know Cubey well, I am very familiar with his accomplishments. He was one of the original Kazenojin, the People of the Wind that helped evolve SL’s sailboats and airplanes into a genuine RL emulation. Several years ago, Francois Jacques gave me a tour of Abbotts. She treated it like a cathedral, full of sacred inspiration ready to take flight. 🙂
So, Kudo’s to Cubey for all the fun and skill he’s given us! I hope he will hang around and benefit from all our admiration for his accomplishments!
http://metaversesailing.net/2009/02/22/takos-tangle-2/
http://metaversesailing.net/2011/05/21/sansara-southern-passage/
We always hate to see well-known highlights go. Unfortunately, change is inevitable. Things close down all the time. I’ve heard of a couple of major landmarks closing down in just the last week alone. What we need to watch for is a trend forming: old ones leaving and no new ones replacing them. I believe such a trend is already starting, but is too small to accurately track. We’ll see if that increases over time
Pingback: Abbotts Aerodrome Purchased By Cheshyr Pontchartrain « Around the Grid
abbotts is now under new ownership. Cheshyr Pontchartrain owner of Novatech has stepped in to preserve a sl icon.