Oh my gosh I actually
flew an airplane today. I'm not sure exactly if all the perspiration soaking my backside when I got out of the cockpit was from the 100+ degree day in a non-air conditioned plane or from my nerves and adrenaline! Most likely a combination of the two!
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What could be so hard about all these gauges? |
A few months ago I purchased a Groupon from Freeway Airport in Burke, Maryland for an introductory flight lesson. It was meant to be a taste of flying without all of the classroom time. Boy, I felt like I was 15 again sitting in my drivers ed car with Craig Opra in the passenger seat - same set up with the mimicked steering and pedals on the right side of the vehicle. Though I don't remember panicking in the car as much as I did in the plane whenever we hit an air pocket, perhaps because correcting yourself on the road is A LOT easier than when you're 2,500 feet in the air!!!
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Here we go! |
The instructor was kind enough to take over the take-off and landing parts - phew, what a relief! Once in the air, it took me some time just to get comfortable with the sensitivity of such a small aircraft to air disruptions (a.k.a. turbulence) and to experiencing the sensation of flight from this perspective, as opposed to my comfy seat a few rows back with beverage service. Once he demonstrated for me the airplane's responsiveness to simple flight maneuvers - banking left and right, pitching up and down, and adjusting the speed - he was true to his word and handed over the controls to me for a good half hour! I flew that little Cessna plane out over the Chesapeake Bay, then back up towards the Bay Bridge, turning to get a good view of Annapolis and the U.S. Naval Academy on our left as we made our way up the Severn River.
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Hello Annapolis! |
As we approached the airport, the instructor gave the controls back to me (I had voluntarily given them up because we had hit a nice rough patch of air that was freaking me out!!) to guide us on the home stretch before he tool control to land. What an experience, and what a rush! Like the longest roller coaster ride ever! I think the one takeaway from this introduction to flying is that I'm more than happy to pay for someone else to fly me to my destination! And I thank every pilot who got me to where I wanted to be, safely, on my many travels around the world. Whew, now I can finally calm down.
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My flying technique: Death grip on wheel and biting my lip to calm my nerves |
Posted on Saturday, July 07, 2012
by
Julie
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