Ever stop to think how lucky we are?

[TDTURBO]

Bobbysand,

Why haven't you flown for so long? Thats horrible! Especially since you stay up on eveything.


I feel the same as everyone else, I love flying so much, I became a doctor just so I could fly. I tried going the military route but I was too tall, (6'6"), for fighters and helicopters. I just put my mind to it and set a goal that no matter what, I was going to find a way to fullfil my lifelong dream. I started and finished my private by 18, stayed barely current until I could finally afford my own ride. There is allot more to it but the bottom line is I would have sacraficed an extremity to fly, I love it so!

BTW: Great thread and post BigD!

 

[Captain Radio]

Because I fly, I envy no man, woman or child.

 

[FastCargo]

When I was a kid...

Remember when you were a young kid? And someone would ask what you wanted to be when you grew up? And usually (it seemed like) it was always something everyone instantly knew. You know (in a kid's voice) "Fireman!", "Policeman!", "Astronaut!", "Pilot!". You have to wonder out of how many people who said things like that when they were young, who actually got to do what they wanted. I consider myself lucky that I am doing what I have literally always wanted to do!

I'm also glad I have a wife who loves airplanes (her dad was a mechanic for Pacific Western/Canadian), and we both look up everytime a plane flies over the house...

Sometimes I forget that...and usually smack myself upside the head when I regain my perspective.

FastCargo

 

[avbug]

Not lucky. Blessed.

I feel grateful for the chance, and deeply humble for the opportunity. I feel a deep obligation to share that gift, and to treat it with the honor and respect it deserves.

The privilege of flight is indeed a blessing.

 

[HU-16]

Wonderful thread, thank you to BigD for starting it. I hope I never lose my passion for flying. It's funny, the friend that introduced me to flying no longer speaks enthusiastically about it. And I only have a few friends that do. As I climb the ladder, I hope that I will never lose that passion. I guess the glass is always half full to me, so it shouldn't be a problem. As I once told a songwriter friend "If I could put into words how I feel flying, I could write a million songs."

PS-Bobby go fly!!!

 

[501261]

Thanks, I needed that reminder. Sometimes you get so caught up in budgets and reports and weather and scheduling that you forget why you got into this business in the first place.

 

[wingnutt]

"make your hobby your job and marry your best friend"

that right there has to be one of (if not the) smartest thing ive yet to hear on this (or any other, for that matter) board yet...

sign me...happy to be one of the few that has accomplished both

 

[surplus1]

BigD, thank you for starting this and to all the rest of you for sharing your thoughts. You've done me a favor all of you.

It's been a long time. So many years, so many months, so many days, so many hours. Ahh yes, the hours. Some exciting, some boring, some frightening, some calm, some curious, some wild, some furious, some so memorable they literally bring tears. ALL special, ALL beautiful.

The tic, tic of a little 4-banger, the purr of a Continental, the toughness of a Lycoming, the hum of a R-985, the song of an R-2800, the rumble of a 4360 the mother of all radials, the forgiveness of a PT-6, the unforgettable scream of a Dart with a Dowty Rotol prop, the power of an Allison, the rush of a JT-8, the special whine of an RB-11, and the whisper of a CF34. Memories.

The sunrise, the breakout from a solid overcast into the clear and endless blue, the lights of the city, the darkness of the Amazon jungle, the endless sand of the Sahara, the majesty of Kilamanjoro, the wonder of the Greenland ice cap ... 200 miles ahead from level 350, the stars you can almost touch, the fury of a North Atlantic weather system, the best wx briefers in the world .... Gander, the myth of the Bermuda Triangle, the sunsets of the Caribbean, the wonder of the Himalayas, the Andes and Tierra del Fuego, the frustration of ORD, the beauty of the fjord at Narsasawaq (sp), the ice in Labrador, the wind at old HK, the expanse of the Pacific (where did He get all that water?). The places, the special people, especially the special people. Memories.

"And there in the high untrespassed sanctity of space
Put out my hand and touched the face of God"

We're a unique breed, in our special world and there's nothing quite like it. In the billions of humans on this planet, very few of us actually share this calling. The special people. Aviators.

The very best to all of you. Thanks again BigD. You made my day.

"There are bold pilots and there are old pilots. But there are no old, bold pilots."

 

[Rvrrat]

Thank You

Someone in another thread had mentioned that there is no "brotherhood" in aviation, I've since come to understand they were talking about something a bit different; I'm utterly grateful for this thread which proves there IS a unique sense of brotherhood amoung those of us who have been or are engaged in aviation.

Thanks to all of you for the spirit lifting writing to read while I struggle to get back into the ether myself.

 

[startingout]

I am currently working on instruments. I am also setting CFI/CFII as the goal for right now. Some would say setting my sights too low. I would answer that the reward for being the conduit for such a special and wonderful thing far out weighs the frustration of banging my head against the airlines doors.
I know that when all is said and done I will always be a part of a very select and blessed group, aviators.
When the inital stress of takeoff, navigation and trim have all sorted themselves out, I am left with the bird, the sky and my thoughts. High over the Colorado plains, I find myself dividing my thoughts between situational awearness, and "holy sh*t I love doing this"
I love the challenge of navigation in a fetureless region. I love the views provided by flying high over La veta pass, or any of the passes that open the west to the east.
I love the sunsets over the rockies.
I love the quiet(sort of)
I love the peace of a well trimmed ship, needles centered and silent radio.
Me, my machine, and an empty sky...can it get any better?