Jamie Beckett

The doctor in a 2023 turbocharged Cirrus doesn’t get the right of way over a student pilot in a 1950s trainer simply because the aircraft is more impressive. There are rules about this sort of thing. We would do well to stay in our lane, follow the rules, and respect those who share the skies and the airport facilities with us.

The Wright brothers did the impossible, which then became the improbable. Eventually transitioning into the realm of the mundane with flights being so common, safe, and affordable that virtually everyone you or I know has flown. That wasn’t true when I was a kid. It was absolute fantasy when Orville was a child.

In aviation, as in all fields that require a commitment to lifelong learning, it’s wise to repeat the lesson. To share best practices. To reiterate the rules. To pass along lessons learned over a period of time that support and encourage the safety of flight.

We all have limits. Each of us has only so much time, so much money, so much patience to put into a given pursuit. Whether that’s a marriage, a business venture, or the quest to becoming a pilot, there is a point where we will give up if we don’t find a sufficient level of success. That’s why it’s so important to set a series of specific goals for your flight training.

For a pilot the early sunset is a gift. Or at least it can be. Especially for flight students and CFIs who need to log a specific amount of night flying to qualify for a certificate.

Pilots should make a serious effort to keep the wheels downward on a regular basis. From takeoff to landing and even to temporarily storing the airplane on the ramp, that goal should be included in our mission plan. If nothing else, the successful execution of that plan will prevent us from having a humbling conversation with our insurance carrier.

Could we be on the cusp of a whole new wave of productive, effective, inspirational educational opportunities that use aviation as a tool to engage students? I think so. I truly do.