Hey Jenna: Thanks for sharing your story here -a courageous act that will inspire a good many others to do as well, i expect. Bravo!
/me: I’m a “Private Pilot, Single-Engine Land & Sea, Multi-Engine Land, Instrument Rated” -so sez the old ticket- but it’s been many many moons since i’ve flown a plane. Have just turned 60 y/o, and… Dunno if i could ever pass the medical -surely not before getting outfitted w/ proper specs & hearing aid & who knows what-all sorts of prostheses- but it’s really a moot point, because i just don’t have the nerve to do it any more.
And it’s just as well, if the truth be told, because i was *always* an accident just waiting to happen. Having taken off with a clogged pitot tube, blundered into an air-show over Toronto, and threaded a line of embedded thunderstorms over Grand Canyon (preflight inspection & NOTAMs check was too often rushed or skipped), i must admit: i was so cocky & convinced of my own immortality, it’s really a miracle that i survived my 20’s & 30’s and went on to sire a fine pair of sons (much wiser & more trustworthy than their old man, thank God My saving grace for all those years was to be driving a C-182 straightleg: the most stable, uncomplicated & forgiving aircraft one could ever hope for.
Still, that’s way too much machine for me nowadays… So i’ve tucked in my wings so far that i can carry them on my back, and only unfurl them when i’m standing atop the nearby coastal bluffs, with a nice moderate breeze blowing onshore that i can soar for a good hour or few with only the seagulls for traffic. No ATC nor FAA nor NOTAMs nor any of that crap involved in Paragliding; just the joy of free flight. If there be anyone in the fold here that’s unable to fly an airplane for whatever reason, and is suffering from feeling too tied to the ground, PG is a pastime i can highly recommend!
What’s Your Title?
Pilot
What is your favorite quote?
“Did you fly through the air incredibly like a bird? Did you partake in the miracle of human flight, you non-contributing zero? You… You’re sitting in a chair IN THE SKY!” (Louis CK, debriefing a whiny 1st class passenger: https://youtu.be/nUBtKNzoKZ4?t=120 )
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