yo, anyone here a pilot?

[viperguy]

i started my pilot's training recently. now that im back here i wonder if anyone else shares my passion.

 

[Josh]

I started lessons a few years ago, but I quit going. I'm not even sure why I quit going. I think I just forgot to go.

I'm starting up again sometime soon, but I don't know when. Maybe this Fall, or sometime next summer. I'm going to get an Associates degree in Aviation Mechanics. I'm going to TTC in August for the classes. I'm getting my A&P, or whatever, license too. I'm planning on being a commercial pilot like my Dad(American Airlines), but I figured the aviation mechanics class wouldn't be a bad idea. At least it's college, y'know?

My Dad's got a 172, and a Bonanza, I may be able to fly solo in once I'm licensed, but I seriously doubt it.

 

[km]

OH GOD WERE ALL GOING TO DIE

 

[Solid Fro]

I'm a pilot...

in Flight Simulator.

What plane does your dad fly for AA, Josh?

 

[Josh]

I'm almost positive it's an MD80.

He flew a 747(might have been a 747-400, but I don't remember) for Atlas Air for a few months a long ass time ago, but he didn't like it plus AA wanted to hire him so he quit. I'm sure he'd love to fly a 747 full of passengers, though, instead of cargo.

 

[viperman]

Yeah, id love to be a pilot of the biggest commercial aircraft evented.

Yeah, id like to have a gun while flying.

Yeah, id like to fly in fear of some ****ing arabian busting into my cockpit, beating the **** outta me, stealing my airplane, and flying it into a big building.

 

[viperguy]

did your dad have to spend alot of time away from home on flights when he flew for AA?

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by viperguy
did your dad have to spend alot of time away from home on flights when he flew for AA?

He still does fly for AA, but the answer is yes. Since AA doesn't have any planes down in Charleston, SC he has to ride on a Delta flight up to New York, and fly for AA out of there. He usually flies to NY on Monday, flies all week, and comes home Friday, or Saturday.

He also flies C-17's for the Air Force Reserves. He does a lot of flying for the AF still even though he's just a reservist now. He's actually leaving in the morning to go somewhere. Hell if I know to where, or for how long, though.

 

[Cobraboy]

I want to be a pilot, I also want to be a mechanic/engineer.

The pilot's job will pay better, but like Josh mentioned, I would be away for long times, and not have the ability to setup a family or something very well, besides, airline pilots usually get divorced and have tough marriages, thats something I'm not interested in.

I'd love to do both, but I can't and I'm going to have to make a decision sometime soon, maybe within the next 2 years.

 

[1X83Z]

Originally posted by Josh
Hell if I know to where, or for how long, though.

On a scale of one to ten, do you know anything?

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by M5Power
On a scale of one to ten, do you know anything?

Not that I know of.

 

[viperguy]

what have you flown josh? all i've done are cessna 152's...the commies at the airport won't let me use the 172's yet.

 

[skylineGTR_guy]

I went to the airstrip with this guy from work and he had one of those kooky planes with the propeller in the back and the word "expiremental" on it...it was tiny....barely bigger than an accord and it was pretty fast...he let me fly around a bit..it was pretty fun up untill he started spining the thing over and over and almost made me lose my lunch....

 

[Solid Lifters]

The only thing I've ever flown is a kite. And it crashed into the ground. After it cought on fire.

 

[Cobraboy]

Originally posted by Solid Lifters
The only thing I've ever flown is a kite. And it crashed into the ground. After it cought on fire.

I flew my budget paper plane into a heater once, beat that!

 

[Duke]

I started lessons a long time ago, but I just couldn't afford to keep it up. I had some hours in 152s, and I did some soaring too. Never soloed, though. I've been up in a lot of different aircraft and had my hands on the controls of a number of them, at least for a while:

Cessna 152, Piper Cub, Aeronca Champ, PT-22 Cadet, PT-17 Stearman, Bonanza, T-28 (now that was a blast, tons of aerobatics and the whole "Top Gun" butt-pack parachute, oxygen mask, helmet/visor, ejection training, etc), Bell Jet Ranger, Fuga (Israeli jet trainer), a variety of Schweizer sailplanes, and some other stuff.

I've also sat in a P-51D, P-38J, F4-F Wildcat, F4-U Corsair, B-25 Mitchell; all airworthy aircraft, but never been up in any of those.

If I hit the lottery I'd get my license as quickly as I could.

 

[milefile]

So moeday when I'm in a plane and the captain comes on the intercom and says "yo! welcome 'board peeps," I'll know it's you.

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by skylineGTR_guy
I went to the airstrip with this guy from work and he had one of those kooky planes with the propeller in the back and the word "expiremental" on it...it was tiny....barely bigger than an accord and it was pretty fast...he let me fly around a bit..it was pretty fun up untill he started spining the thing over and over and almost made me lose my lunch....

I've never really flown any planes, but I have took over the controls of my Dad's planes, the 172 my uncle rented a few weeks ago, and the controls of both the handbuilts my Dad's friend owns, for a little bit.

The people who own the hangar next to my Dad's have 3 of those Experimental Long-EZ's you're talking about. One has a little pink pinstripes down it, another has blue, and the other has green. The man and woman with the pink/blue are married, and the guy with the green is a friend of their's. They're really cool planes, and cheap at around $20-50k but from what the owner's say they're quite a bit more difficult to fly, and land, in than normal planes. It's the same plane John Denver died in.

Sounds like you've flown in some nice planes there, duke. I've sat in most of those, but I can't say I've been up in the air with them.

 

[Duke]

Originally posted by Josh
Sounds like you've flown in some nice planes there, duke. I've sat in most of those, but I can't say I've been up in the air with them.

I was quite the private-airport rat in my younger days. Plus one of my neighbors was a career pilot with a very colorful background.

Oh, yeah, I've been up in the right seat of a cargo 747 with no one else aboard but that neighbor, and add the Cessna Skymaster (pusher/puller with high wing and twin boom tail) to the list.

 

[rjensen11]

I've been thinking about it. I'm either going to UND, UofM(TwinCities), St. Thomas(Minnesota) or St. John's(Minnesota). If I end up going to UND, I'll definately check out the aviation courses.

Josh, could you check with your dad and see if airlines let people with Lasic surgery be pilots? Because I'm interested in being a pilot, but I also want to have surgery done on my eyes once I turn 21....

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by rjensen11


Josh, could you check with your dad and see if airlines let people with Lasic surgery be pilots? Because I'm interested in being a pilot, but I also want to have surgery done on my eyes once I turn 21....

I wouldn't see why they wouldn't, but yes I'll check with him.

 

[RVDNuT374]

I've flown a Cessna w/ clipped wings *in GTA3 that is *

 

[the_cobbinator]

I've been interested in flying since I was three, but I want to fly fighter jets, like F-16's. My school dropped aviation just in time for me to start. . My uncle was a navigator ina B-52 during the Gulf War and was part of a "secret" mission. He let me fly with him around the base once. I was going to start up lessons but the school requires you to have a drivers licencse, and I haven't gotten my temps yet. have you guys been to any airshows lately? That eye surgury thing would be great, too.

 

[Duke]

No, I haven't been to a show in about 10 years. When I was a kid, though, my father was on the Academy of Model Aeronautics radio control show team. We did exhibitions at a lot of big airshows, so I had "backstage passes" to some major demonstrations. I've seen the Thunderbirds, the Blue Angels, the Snow Birds, and the Red Arrows from about 100 feet off the flightline. I saw the Red Devils (Mary Gathney, Charlie Hilliard, and Gene Soucy) do an entire aerobatic routine in three Pitts Specials that were chained together with 10 feet of chain. I've met Bob Hoover and watched him belly in his P-51 when one gear leg wouldn't extend during practice. I've gotten sunburn from a Harrier's exhaust.

But I'm bragging way too much. I'll shut up now!

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by neon_duke
I've seen the Thunderbirds, the Blue Angels, the Snow Birds

Ditto. Not sure about the Red Arrows, though, so I left that out.

I met all of the Blue Angel pilots when I was about 12. They were at the CAFB(Charleston Air Force Base) doing a show. We(Dad and I) were walking from our house on the base at the time to the runways, and we walked past a squadron with about 10-12 brand new BMW's out front with Rick Hendrick BMW tags on them sitting out front. We knew it had to be the cars Rick Hendrick BMW provided them while they were in town so my Dad took me inside where they were all standing around in their flightsuits talking. I shook some hands, said some hello's, got bored, and we left to go to the actual show.

Originally posted by neon_duke
I've gotten sunburn from a Harrier's exhaust.

They had a Harrier demonstration at one of the CAFB Air Shows a few years ago. It was hot as hell even from like 50 yards away. It was also extremely loud when it was doing those vertical takeoffs/landings.

 

[Cobraboy]

Hmm, the only interesting thing thats really happened at airshows I've been to was when a F-111 came over from Australia and did a show, they did the fuel dump burn thing which resulted in a flame about 50m long extending out from the engines.

The guy that runs the factory where my dad works is one of the richest 100 people in NZ, and he owns quite a few planes, quite a few rare ones as well, anyone heard of Grant Beal?

 

[the_cobbinator]

Yeah, Ive seen the Blue Angels and the Thunderbirds. My uncle knew one of the pilots so we got to go right upi close and also got to see a cockpit. Those are the coolest things I have seen.