Cruising at 2500 feet.........clear skies ahead....
Yesterday I had one of the most incredible experiences of my life, I took my first flying lesson, and took the controls of a Cessna 172 in the air. For some reason, I kept thinking that I would get nervous, or that I should get nervous, but I never did, I just felt excited the entire time. I can't say that I ever thought that I would be up there, flying a plane.....but when I flew a few weeks ago, it really reminded me of my brother Ian, who was a pilot. Ian died almost eight years ago, but somehow in my heart, it's always just yesterday...... He was my best friend, and more of a "golden boy" than I could ever try to properly express with words.....just one of those people who is almost too good to be true, and an incredible pilot. When I was in the sky, in the co-pilots seat (not actually co-piloting of course) on a Cape Air flight the other week, it really made me think of him, and I loved that, so I decided to fly again.
Walking to the airplane hanger from the car was the beginning of my day, and I looked at the tiny planes with anticipation and excitement. I met my instructor Andrew, who had just completed a pre-flight check, and we started settling into the plane in preparation for our flight. He had a friendly and patient demeanor, yet also a quiet confidence which made me feel good, when I'm learning something new, it really matters how the information is conveyed, and I could instantly tell he was knowledgeable, without a hint of talking down, just what a great instructor should be. He gave me a headset, which I fumbled around trying to plug in....isn't it funny how hard everything seems the first day of anything? Even adjusting my seatbelt was awkward.....practice, practice. We moved onto the runway for takeoff and Andrew showed me how to control the plane with my feet, gently pressing on the pedals to keep it smooth and steady as we lined up for takeoff. He also showed me how to adjust the throttle to decrease our speed.......there were so many gauges in the cockpit.....and every one of them looked foreign to me, yet I knew that within a few weeks that would probably all change.
Once we were in the air, Andrew showed me how to adjust the trim of the airplane, so that you can maintain a steady flight altitude, without constant pressure on the yoke. We also practiced some basic turns, and Andrew reminded me to "check for other planes" before making a turn.....other planes!!!! Oh my gosh, I'm FLYING! Amazing!
I think the part which was a little scary, was descending for a landing. Even though intellectually it makes sense to decrease your elevation for a landing, there is something really scary about gliding toward the landing strip! We landed, then taxied back in just the way we left, then pushed the plane manually back, and tied it down. It was an amazing experience, and I can't wait for my next lesson. Andrew made my first logbook entry for me, and in the excitement of the day.....I managed to leave my logbook at the airport!
Stay gorgeous and healthy, and live your dreams!
Megan
Once we were in the air, Andrew showed me how to adjust the trim of the airplane, so that you can maintain a steady flight altitude, without constant pressure on the yoke. We also practiced some basic turns, and Andrew reminded me to "check for other planes" before making a turn.....other planes!!!! Oh my gosh, I'm FLYING! Amazing!
I think the part which was a little scary, was descending for a landing. Even though intellectually it makes sense to decrease your elevation for a landing, there is something really scary about gliding toward the landing strip! We landed, then taxied back in just the way we left, then pushed the plane manually back, and tied it down. It was an amazing experience, and I can't wait for my next lesson. Andrew made my first logbook entry for me, and in the excitement of the day.....I managed to leave my logbook at the airport!
Stay gorgeous and healthy, and live your dreams!
Megan
1 comments:
Yes, very cool!
Post a Comment