Why do I fly??? LONG
A Lieberma
This past week has been such a rewarding time in my little part of the
aviation world.
The selfish part.....
When I preflight, I hope people see me.
When I slowly trundle down the taxiway for departure, I hope people see me.
When I make my call up on the radio, I hope people hear me in the FBO.
When I lift off in the blue wild yonder, I hope people driving along the
road at the end of the runway see me.
When I am enroute, I hope people see me when they look up
When I am on final, I hope people look up from a subdivision and see me
When I tie down, I hope people see me.
Now you may ask, just why I hope such things. I am privileged to be a part
of an elite group that can do something just short of supernatural.
We weren't built to fly folks, and that itself is an amazing
accomplishment, that we were given the rights to share what nature does
naturally.
So, my selfish self hopes that the people that sees me do the so called
mundane things of aviation wondering just where am I going, envious that I
am doing something that they wish they can do.
It's truly magic to see the edge of earth on severe clear days.
It's truly magic to have the privilege of floating along at 110 knots 7,500
feet above a broken cloud deck.
It's truly magic to enter IMC from above, sunny as can be to descend down
to 200 AGL, break out to a runway lined up below me, with dreary, rainy
conditions.
It's truly magic on night flights to see more lights in the sky then on the
ground.
Now, don't get me wrong I am really not that selfish, and my reason for
loving to fly IS FOR MY UNSELFISH PART OF ME AS I AM LEARNING THIS PAST
WEEK.
The Unselfish part of me.....
I was out this past week at the airport, needing to get night current. I
do my jig, fly out to the wild blue yonder, watch ole sol set below the
horizon from front rows seats at 3500 feet, and when the ball of fire sank
below the horizon, I returned back to the airport and did my touch and
goes, stop and goes and so forth. I tie down the plane and await my ride
from the airport (My wife went to church probably to pray for me) *big
smile*.
So, here I am waiting. and this elderly gentleman came walking up to visit.
I learned he takes a walk around the ramp every day, 2 times a day. Got to
chatting with him, he learns I fly, and owns a plane. He asked me which
one, and I point it out to him. I asked if he wanted to peek inside, and
this was like lighting a fire under him.
We walk out, I open the door, and he climbs in with no assistance. We sit
in the plane, I ask if he flew, which he did his first flight in a J2 Cub
IN 1939. Compared to what he started with, my instrument panel must have
looked like an airliner panel. I could tell, just by sitting in this plane
with a man I never met, that I have touched a part of him, as watching him
from the soft glow of the flashlight, he was re-living his flying days from
the J2 Cub to a B52 bomber.
He just sat there, like he was home.......
I was in no hurry to move along, as I could see his eyes light up. He was
very computer literate, and had never seen a panel mounted GPS, so when I
put on the avionics, it just incredulized him on how much aviation has
progressed. We sat in my plane for about 45 minutes flying higher then the
plane's capability and we never left the ground.
My wife pulls up to the plane in her car, and the gentleman needed a little
assistance getting out of the plane. Being a low wing, it's fully
understandable considering your feet are lower then the wing and pulling
one's self up would be difficult. Once up, he got off the wing without
assistance.
Why I make such big ado, is that this gentleman was 87 years old!!!
He stopped flying 10 years ago due to his eyesight. Could have fooled me,
as he sure moved around without eyeglasses and had no problem seeing at
night that I could see!
Unfriggin believable...... I hope I have 1/10 his spunk at 67 years old
much less at 87!!!
Continuing on....... fast forward to our next generation. Had a great
opportunity to share more aviation with our younger ones. Friend of mine
called me up and said would I want to fly to Cleveland MS for a $100
hamburger. I would meet him at his local airport, he would rent a plane
and we would fly in tandem. He had two daughters, one would ride up with
him, and the other would ride with me, and we would reverse them on the
trip home.
Now, don't get me wrong, kids are not interested in preflight, they are not
interested in the mechanics of flight, as in today's generation, it's just
another form of transportation.
But they are fascinated with interacting with the airplane when put to the
task. I went over the basics of the controls previously, and showed them
the "important" instruments, and they knew when I said their control, they
take over. Well......
Imagine climbing out at 1000 feet, saying to a young one, your controls,
and their eyes light up like beacons in the night. I told both of the
young ones, that once I give them the controls, they are to take me to the
destination airport as I gave them all the tools they needed.
Imagine their looks as we climb through a scattered strato cumulus cloud
deck up to 7,500 and break out of the haze at 6,500 to the deepest blue
skies God could paint.
Imagine their reactions as we pass over the cloud deck, with the tops
zipping by like there is not a care in the world.
Imagine their reactions as we slalom around the clouds to maintain VFR
flight rules on our descent to terra firma
Flight quality, suffice it to say, we didn't make it to our destination in
breakneck speed, we didn't maintain PTS standards in headings on the climb,
but did I care, nope, not at all, just wanted the kids to interact with the
plane on their level, just wanted them to enjoy having the ability to have
control of something in their lives.
We level off to flight altitude, I would help trim the plane, and they
still had to navigate to the airport and to up the anti, I would have them
find the airport and fly to their "perceived airport".
Just watching them interact, encouraging them, it's ok to look out the
window......
What I hope we all can do.....
Taking from a movie title "Pay it Forward"…
We "Pay it Forward" to our younger generation, and "pay it back" to our
older generation.
We owe to ourselves and those around us......
We are very privileged people in our corner of the world, and we cannot
forget that as long as we are on the topside of where the green grass
grows!
Allen
Morgans
"A Lieberma" <lieb...@myself.com> wrote in message
news:Xns9840DE9072CFB...@216.77.188.18...
> You know, this may come across drippy sweet, but who cares....
=Snip a great post=
> We are very privileged people in our corner of the world, and we cannot
> forget that as long as we are on the topside of where the green grass
> grows!
>
> Allen
That really deserves to be read in a magazine, where more can read it, than
read this newsgroup.
Great story. Thanks.
--
Jim in NC
Gene Seibel
--
Gene Seibel
Tales of Flight - http://pad39a.com/gene/tales.html
Because I fly, I envy no one.
BTIZ
Aviation Rags..
We took one of our local Scout Troop to the glider club today.. August is
"Aviation Month", and today the winners of their "White Planes" competition
took glider rides, we also take a glider to their troop meeting on
competition night and set it up.
It reminded me of this poem. BT
Because I Fly
Because I fly,
I laugh more than other men.
I look up and see more than they.
I know how clouds feel,
What it's like to have the blue in my lap,
To look down on Birds,
To feel freedom in a thing called the Stick..
Who but I
Can slice between God's billowed legs,
And feel them laugh and crash with his step?
Who else has seen the unclimbed peaks?
The rainbow's secrets?
The real reason birds sing?
Because I fly,
I envy no man on earth.
"A Lieberma" <lieb...@myself.com> wrote in message
news:Xns9840DE9072CFB...@216.77.188.18...
> Taking from a movie title "Pay it Forward".
BTIZ
BT
"BTIZ" <btizn...@cox.nospm.net> wrote in message
news:ff4Pg.4463$8J2.2030@fed1read11...
>A most excellent post.. worthy of writing to AOPA and FLYING and a few
>other Aviation Rags..
> We took one of our local Scout Troop to the glider club today.. August is
> "Aviation Month", and today the winners of their "White Planes"
> competition took glider rides, we also take a glider to their troop
> meeting on competition night and set it up.
>
> It reminded me of this poem. BT
> Because I Fly
>
> Because I fly,
>
> I laugh more than other men.
>
> I look up and see more than they.
>
> I know how clouds feel,
>
> What it's like to have the blue in my lap,
>
> To look down on Birds,
>
> To feel freedom in a thing called the Stick..
>
> Who but I
>
> Can slice between God's billowed legs,
>
> And feel them laugh and crash with his step?
>
> Who else has seen the unclimbed peaks?
>
> The rainbow's secrets?
>
> The real reason birds sing?
>
> Because I fly,
>
> I envy no man on earth.
> Brian Shul
Jack Allison
> older generation.
Very true Allen. A few months back, one of my partners and I flew his
neighbor to a local fly-in. The neighbor few B-25s in WWII. My partner
was in the left seat and Ray flew most of the way home from the right
and landed the plane. It was great seeing this guy (in his 80's but
you'd never know it) having a ball flying.
I'm planning on doing a little more "paying it forward" in a couple
weeks via participating in a Young Eagles event. I hope a gazillion
kids show up and I have to fly all day and not have much of a voice left
when it's all said and done...because I know it will be worth it having
the chance to spark the imagination and, hopefully, aviation future of
some kids.
Nice post. It's always great to reflect on why we fly. Preach it bro!
--
Jack Allison
PP-ASEL-Instrument Airplane
"To become a Jedi knight, you must master a single force. To become
a private pilot you must strive to master four of them"
- Rod Machado
(Remove the obvious from address to reply via e-mail)
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
> The selfish part.....
>
> When I preflight, I hope people see me.
> When I slowly trundle down the taxiway for departure, I hope people see me.
> When I make my call up on the radio, I hope people hear me in the FBO.
> When I lift off in the blue wild yonder, I hope people driving along the
> road at the end of the runway see me.
> When I am enroute, I hope people see me when they look up
> When I am on final, I hope people look up from a subdivision and see me
> When I tie down, I hope people see me.
I read this and the corollary to your writing popped back into my head.
The Pilot's Prayer:
"Dear Lord,
Please don't let anybody see me screw up."
--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com
Doug
> When I preflight, I hope people see me.
> When I slowly trundle down the taxiway for departure, I hope people see me.
> When I make my call up on the radio, I hope people hear me in the FBO.
> When I lift off in the blue wild yonder, I hope people driving along the
> road at the end of the runway see me.
> When I am enroute, I hope people see me when they look up
> When I am on final, I hope people look up from a subdivision and see me
> When I tie down, I hope people see me.
But when I make a bad landing I hope they don't see me?
Cecil Chapman
There is a grandfather that brings his grandson to the airport at least
twice a week and the two of them watch the planes together - for HOURS.
They've been doing this for at least several years. I remember when the boy
was just a little fellow and now he is growing up. A couple of years back I
was heading back home from the airport and saw the two of them parked
watching the planes. I pulled over and gave them a video tape (I bring
several just for this purpose) called "Your First Flight Lesson" put out by
the King Schools, along with an informational brochure from Gleim which
explains what is involved in learning to fly. The two couldn't have been
more pleased and thankful and it put a smile on my face as I made the long
trek back home from San Jose to San Francisco.
Some of the local pilots have given the grandfather and his grandson a local
flight or two (what you wrote made me think I should have been one of them)
and you can see it in the kid's eyes how enthused with aviation he is (and
his granddad) - just seeing that kind and level of enthusiasm just lights up
the soul.
Well, all I really meant to write was to thank you for the post. Aviation
has blessed my life in ways that I can describe and in others that are
indescribable or incalculable.
Good winds! :)
--
--
=-----
Good Flights!
Cecil E. Chapman
CFI-A, CP-ASEL-IA
Check out my personal flying adventures from my first flight to the
checkride AND the continuing adventures beyond!
Complete with pictures and text at: www.bayareapilot.com
"I fly because it releases my mind from the tyranny of petty things."
- Antoine de Saint-Exupery -
"We who fly, do so for the love of flying. We are alive in the air with
this miracle that lies in our hands and beneath our feet"
- Cecil Day Lewis -
Morgans
"Cecil Chapman" <bayare...@sbcglobal.net> wrote
> Well, all I really meant to write was to thank you for the post. Aviation
> has blessed my life in ways that I can describe and in others that are
> indescribable or incalculable.
And sometimes, you get cake, too! <g>
--
Jim in NC
Peter R.
<snip>
> We are very privileged people in our corner of the world, and we cannot
> forget that as long as we are on the topside of where the green grass
> grows!
Al, excellent post. You should consider posting this over in
rec.aviation.piloting, too, as there are many there who would very much
appreciate reading it but who do not visit this group.
--
Peter
gwh...@ix.netcom.com
I spend the better part of last week in Connecticut half at the casinos and
the other half at my WWII reunion.
Had a meeting with a Smithsonian curiator who is working on a histoy of
electronic navigation. We visited
the New England Air Museum and the B-29 there. I enjoyed all the feelings
and emotions that Allen wrote
about. Have much more history to put on my web site.
Gene Whitt
chines...@hotmail.com
Cecil Chapman
> --
> Jim in NC
;0)
john smith
"A Lieberman" <atl...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Well, maybe we can make our own "prayer" by combining others into one..
>
> When I preflight, I hope people see me, Lord hear my prayer
> When I slowly trundle down the taxiway for departure, I hope people see
> me, Lord hear my prayer
> When I make my call up on the radio, I hope people hear me in the FBO,
> Lord hear my prayer
> When I lift off in the blue wild yonder, I hope people driving along
> the road at the end of the runway see me, Lord hear my prayer
> When I am enroute, I hope people see me when they look up, Lord hear my
> prayer
> When I am on final, I hope people look up from a subdivision and see
> me, Lord hear my prayer
> When I tie down, I hope people see me, Lord hear my prayer
> When I screw up, please don't let anybody see me, Lord hear my prayer.
I don't even want to think about the looks I would get saying that in
church. :-)
GeorgeC
GeorgeC
Jim Logajan
> I guess I'm lucky, my preacher is a pilot.
A sky pilot? How high can he fly?