A Different Flight Lesson (You’ll Love This One)

Look!  Up in the sky.  It’s a bird…  It’s a plane…

first solo flight

Oh my gosh.  It’s me.

katie solo

By myself.

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Martin is on the ground with a radio in his hand.

solo landing

While I come back from my first solo flight.

exiting plane

And good news, I made it back down without a hitch.  

(Well obviously, since I’m here telling you about it.)

* * *

I’m still in shock at the thought of flying without Martin by my side.  Sometimes, I’m still shocked that he isn’t in the pilot’s seat when we are together because I am sitting there.  I always call him “my pilot”.  Now he needs a new nickname (and he is not keen on “my co-pilot”).

On the day of my solo flight, Martin and I got out of bed, quickly ate some breakfast, and went to pre-flight the plane.  The air felt like silk.  I knew it was the day Martin was going to get out of the plane and have me keep flying while he was on the ground.  I like to say that he was so afraid of my flying that he jumped out of the plane on the first chance he got.

Really, though, he wanted to jump out two days before, and when I found out what he was planning, I panicked.  It never occurred to me that I could be ready to fly without him.  For years, I have told Martin that I cannot be a pilot because I do not do landings.  It became a huge joke between us, and slowly, I stopped resisting.  In fact, according to my log book, I have almost 100 landings under my belt with Martin at my side.  Still, I was nervous.  He agreed to stay… well at least stay one more time.

The next day, we had horrible crosswinds.  That meant the wind was blowing over the runway at an angle instead of straight (or not at all).  You have to do some fancy footwork and handwork to keep your plane on track.  I didn’t have to think about doing my first solo flight because I knew no instructor would have a student solo in those kinds of winds.  So I relaxed.  I practiced with the idea in my mind that my instructor could not keep correcting me forever.  It made me relax.  It made me build confidence.

So when we woke up on the day pictured above and the air was smooth, I knew I needed to go off on my own.  And more importantly, I was ready.  I was excited.

Martin and I went and practiced a few maneuvers.  We did two landings.  Then Martin asked me to let him out of the plane.

Four pilots gathered outside to watch me take off.  At the end of the runway, I whispered the phrase women in my family have been whispering for generations:  Lord give me strength.  I pushed the throttle in all the way, and the engine roared.

I zipped across the runway and lifted off.  The plane felt weird without someone on my right.  I wasn’t bumping any elbows, and the plane rose faster without the extra weight.  I realized I wasn’t even scared.  I followed the traffic pattern, watching my altitude, and really feeling like I knew what to do.

Ten minutes later, I landed and immediately took off again.  ”Great landing and great takeoff,” Martin radioed.  You can probably guess how huge my smile was.  Twice more, I came around and landed before coming to a full stop and exiting the runway.

Those four pilots cheered as I climbed from the plane.  Martin gave me a huge hug, and so did the very pilot who taught Martin how to fly so long ago.  

And all I could wonder was:  why did I resist learning how to fly for so long?

katie solo

I hope you enjoyed this blip in my weekend.  Thoughts?  Tips?  Ideas?  Places you want me to take you?