Weather: KBJC 242147Z 18008KT 60SM SKC 07/M13 A2997
There is a special joy you get when flying someone around. It may be the fun in sharing this amazing experience of flying. It may be the fun in exhibiting your newfound piloting skill. Whatever it is, it was great to get to take my parents up for a flight. They are the first family/friends I have had a chance to take in the sky. They came down from Seattle to visit for Thanksgiving weekend and we finally got the weather to cooperate on Saturday for a flight around the Boulder area.
Since the weather was bad on Friday, my usual instructor set me up with another instructor who was free and we flew out of BJC. We flew in 734QD which is a 180hp plane, but sadly doesn't have plugs for headsets in the back seat; so that made communications a bit more difficult and they didn't get to hear all the tower chatter and fun like that. Fortunately they were both good sports about it and didn't seem to mind.
Our flight took us north to the practice area for some steep turns. After we completed those, we did what most people seem to refer as the floating pencil trick. I don't know if there is a name for this move, but I described it in a previous post as being like the "vomit comet". We did 3-4 of these moves and I think my dad liked it, and I knew my mom probably wouldn't. I checked with her each time before we did the move, but I had a feeling she would have rather told me to stop.
After these moves, we headed to the Boulder airport to show my parents where I have been flying lately. We diverted to the west around the Longmont airport being that it was the weekend and there is heavy skydiving activity there. As we passed to the west, we heard them call on the radio that they were dropping some jumpers as we were passing by.
One stop and go at Boulder and we were on our way back to BJC. Outside of making my mom sick, which she told me after we were on the ground, I think they both really enjoyed the flight. I couldn't have been happier to take them up. I can't wait to do it again once I have my license.
Thanks for the flight Mom and Dad!
Labels: flying
I'd fly with you again any time, Pete. Thanks for taking us up!
Love, Mom
Hi, Pete. There are few things in the world as rewarding as taking your mom and dad up in an airplane that you are piloting. The longer you fly, the more of these little gems you'll experience.
I enjoyed reading your blog. Like yourself, I transitioned from a corporate loan officer gig to airline pilot. Feel free to check out my blog: http://www.jeromecone.blogspot.com
Go get'em! -- JJC
Jerome,
Thanks. I can't wait to follow in your footsteps.
Sharing the experience of flying is great. I can't wait to be able to take friends up for a different perspective.
A smile creeped across my face reading this, my mom refused to fly on the a380 during a recent holiday - "Its too big". And the cessna is "Too Small"
-Mike
theaviationpage.com