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'03 News |
From the time I was a
kid, I've has always loved being up high,... mountain tops,
tall buildings, and especially airplanes. Even now, I try to
get the window seat whenever I fly for business trips. The
idea of actually piloting an airplane was just a
dream, though,... something best left for those far-off,
halcyon days of retirement. Then, late last Fall,
Karen took me to dinner and made an announcement. She had
decided that it was silly to put off the dream when we had
the means to make it happen now. What a wife! So, in February, I
started ground school at Madison County Executive airport,
under the entertaining tutelage of Rob Lindstrom. Later the
same month I began flying lessons at Redstone Army Airfield with a
fellow Lockheed employee, Dave Williams. Doing both at the
same time was like "sipping from a fire hose", but somehow
that new knowledge leaked in. By the end of May, ground
school was over, the FAA written test had been passed, and
it looked like the first phase of flight training was coming
to it's logical conclusion,...the first solo. On June 5, Dave Williams
determined the skies were clear and the winds were
acceptable, so together we did a few takeoffs and landings
to make sure all the cobwebs were blown out. Then Dave had
me drop him off and told me to go make three take-offs and
landings on my own. He remained on the taxiway to observe,
listening on a hand-held radio and taking
pictures. After the initial
"ohmygosh", I steered the Cessna 172 (N35553) onto the
runway and took off. As the plane climbed into the air I
realized that it was a lot quieter than usual,...due to the
absense of my "Constant Flight Interrupter" (the acronym
"CFI" actually stands for "Certified Flight Instructor", but
they do have a way of peppering you with questions while
you're flying!) Everyone's first solo is
memorable, but Dave found a way to make it even moreso!
After three successful landings, I steered the airplane back
over to pick him up and found him standing with two security
guards. It seems they had seen a
guy out on the airfield, with a walkie talkie and taking
pictures, and given the heightened security around airports
these days, they thought that looked suspicious. Well, after
several phone calls it was determined that Dave was probably
not a threat to national security, and we were allowed to go
on our way. Not many students can say their CFI was willing
to get arrested for them on their first solo! Gerrit and Tucker were
waiting us when we pulled up at the flying club, and got to
help do the traditional shirt thing. I was a little
disappointed that Karen couldn't be there, especially since
it was all her idea in the first place. But then, as we
rounded the corner for home, it all became clear. To cap the
whole day off, she had organized a surprise "first solo" and
birthday party for me with all of our friends. What a
wife!
his dream!
Returning
from a successful flight: the plane is still in the same
number of pieces as when it left, and so were we
:-)
The
first solo take-off.
On
final approach, flaps down and lined up with the
runway.
The
first solo landing,...best of the day.
Thanks for stopping
by!
We check the e-mail about forty-leven times a day!
Reach us at theburkes@knology.net