One Pilot’s View: Free fall to the left seat

Every pilot was inspired to become an aviator by someone or something. My earliest aviation memories revolve around trips to the St. Louis Airport where my family would drop off or pick up my dad for his business trips.

At this young age, I wanted to become a pilot because an airplane was the coolest thing I had ever seen. That was a general interest. How I actually became a pilot is a different story — and my path was not typical.

I entered the Army in 1967 and during initial training learned that I could volunteer to become a paratrooper and receive so-called “Jump Pay.” I had just gotten married and that sounded like a welcome additional source of income.

As a paratrooper, I would do a series of training jumps. Back then all were static line jumps with barely maneuverable round parachutes. In a “static line” jump, the cord that deploys the main chute is a line that remains attached to the plane and automatically deploys the parachute when you jump out.

These were low altitude jumps. We started jumping at 2,400 feet above ground level and eventually got to full combat equipment jumps of 1,250 feet.

The idea was to minimize exposure to enemy ground fire. According to the Army, the sooner on the ground and fighting, the better.

I always told myself that I would someday do some real skydiving — a rip cord (no static line) and from 11,000 feet and up to maximize the free fall. Years later I did just that.

Initially I had some concerns about the safety of skydiving. I located a jump school about an hour away that offered students a special safety device that gave jumpers some additional comfort. It was an automatic activation device that would pull the safety chute if the jumper did not deploy the main chute by a preset altitude of about 2,000 feet.

Using this device gave assurances that if the jumper failed to pull the ripcord for any reason, for example, if the jumper “froze” upon jumping or if a jumper accidentally bumped his or her head on the fuselage or tail of the plane upon exit, the automatic activation device would open the safety chute at 2,000 feet above ground level. In my opinion the risks had been reduced to an acceptable level and I enrolled in jump school.

As a student I made a series of training jumps, but this time with a real, flyable airfoil type parachute. Pull the left or right handle down and the chute flies in that direction. Pull both handles and the chute will slow into a flare for landing. Free falls are the best — prolonged weightlessness is a sensation that is hard to beat.

After you pull the chute, corkscrews are a lot of fun, but just silently floating through the sky in any direction you choose is a unique, delightful feeling.

My wife had no interest in skydiving (most people don’t) but each time after my initial training she would show her support by packing up the kids and a picnic lunch and they would watch me skydive. I certainly appreciated her and the kids being there, but it soon became apparent that skydiving is not much of a family sport.

It may well be the ultimate thrill, but only for the jumper. Viewed from the ground, there was little to see. The jump plane was just too high and not visible to the naked eye. We typically deployed chutes at around 4,000 feet but even then I was one of five to 15 other jumpers. Neither my wife nor the kids knew which parachutist I was in the crowded sky.

One day as we were driving back from the airport following some jumps, I asked my wife what she thought about my skydiving. She replied that she was glad that I got to fulfill a lifelong dream, but in truth it was not much of a spectator sport. She certainly had a point.

Although I could now cross skydiving off my “bucket list,” the question became what to replace it with? I wanted something that we could all enjoy as a family.

The company I was employed by at the time had a fleet of corporate jets and I was occasionally a passenger. Shortly after my last jump I was again a passenger, but this time I asked the pilots how hard it was to learn to fly. They said there was no doubt that anyone with average physical and mental abilities could get a private pilot certificate if they worked at it.

They immediately invited me to sit in the jump seat behind them and gave me a headset so I could hear them speaking. During the flight, they explained what they were doing and why in broad terms. These pilots were very warm and friendly. As I deplaned at the destination, they made me promise that I would check with a flight school about private pilot lessons. I smiled and nodded my agreement.

My next business flight was to a smallish town in central Arkansas. The company’s travel department booked a charter for me for this short hop. I was the only passenger and as I boarded what I later learned was a Piper Lance, I mentioned that I was considering becoming a private pilot.

I secretly hoped the pilot would let me sit in the co-pilot’s seat. The pilot smiled, ushered me into the co-pilot’s seat and informed me that he was a Certified Flight Instructor. I was to be his co-pilot on this trip and away we went.

I did not fly the takeoff or landing, but under his direction and supervision I actually flew the plane to within about 15 miles of our destination airport. I was able to fly back following my business meeting. This instructor explained everything as if it was my first flight school flight.

If the corporate jet pilots got me to bite, this charter pilot set the hook. It was the feel of the yoke in my hand and the plane’s reaction to the small inputs I made that closed the deal.

That evening I was so excited that I reported every detail of my first piloting experience to my wife. I could barely sleep. That very night I knew I wanted to become a pilot.

Later I suggested to my wife that I would gladly trade my skydiving for a pilot’s certificate. I told her after I became a pilot our whole family could participate in the travel and the fun of flight. She readily agreed to the swap. I enrolled in flight school soon after.

Every aviator takes his or her own individual path to become a pilot. My inspiration to fly arrived via a parachute.