Do you ever wish..

BalooAirService

BalooAirService

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Skimming through the great thread "so student pilot.. who are we...", really got jealous. The excitement they are experiencing, the thrill, the joy, of transitioning from average Joe/Jane to licensed pilots is a feeling I actually miss. Learning to fly is an amazing experience.. I wish I could experience that joy again.
First unassisted landing.
First greaser.
First 10hrs.
First solo.
First XC.
First XC solo.
That amazing solo long XC.
That day you passed the checkride.

Do you ever wish you could be a student (zero hour student - checkride) pilot again?
As crazy as it sounds, I sure do. And this time I could pass in half the time lol.
 
Not really. There are plenty of other things to learn while flying.

An interesting one is the first nadir photo. Either steep turns around a point or a full power slip. It's a lot harder than it sounds.

Then of course there is the first ILS/LPV to minimums in actual, first breakout above the clouds, first "best forward speed" approach (I did that one on my instrument checkride), first mountain flight, first glider flight, first successful thermalling, and on and on.
 
I've always hated being called a student. I have no idea why other than I would much rather be a graduate.
 
No...just not student. To me, being called a student is like being called a lower life form. To me.
 
I've had a first solo three times so far, and each was much better than the previous. Same goes for checkrides in different category aircraft. So it's simply a fallacy to think that your very first "first solo" is somehow more amazing or incredible than your potential future ones. They didn't coin the phrase "the sky is the limit" for nothing.

Edit: Thinking about it, my first Angel Flight mission was just as exciting and satisfying (if not more so) as any of my solos or checkrides. And amazingly, they haven't lost their luster yet (after flying about 16 of them).
 
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I just had my third solo. It was by far the most memorable since no one was in the airplane the entire flight. It was so cool, I'm still giddy.
 
BalooAirService said:
Skimming through the great thread "so student pilot.. who are we...", really got jealous. The excitement they are experiencing, the thrill, the joy, of transitioning from average Joe/Jane to licensed pilots is a feeling I actually miss. Learning to fly is an amazing experience.. I wish I could experience that joy again.
First unassisted landing.
First greaser.
First 10hrs.
First solo.
First XC.
First XC solo.
That amazing solo long XC.
That day you passed the checkride.

Do you ever wish you could be a student (zero hour student - checkride) pilot again?
As crazy as it sounds, I sure do. And this time I could pass in half the time lol.
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Haha, no! But I get you, I've had so many fufiling moments and I just got my ppl like, almost a year ago
 
I don't have much interest to be the new kid on the block again. I had some great times during those days of primary training, but I'm happy to have my wings.
 
I get that thrill every 6 months on a checkride, then again when I pass my 1st class medical.
 
Timbeck2 said:
I've always hated being called a student. I have no idea why other than I would much rather be a graduate.
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:lol::lol::lol: First I really had to laugh about your response... But it's true for me too. :redface:
 
What about your first across the country trip? If you haven't done that, it would be a good first. You could always get a new rating, floatplane, DC-3, you know, something useful!
 
agreed.. on most of the replies.
There is obviously MANY great first's,
IFR solo.
First type rating.
First jet plane.
First multi solo..
etc etc..
I was only talking about zero hr student though, earning your initial wings.
 
mulligan said:
Have your better half hit you in the back of the head with a frying pan. Done appropriately, you may forget all you accomplished and then can start over again.
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You assume my better half knows where a frying pan is. She uses the smoke alarm as an oven timer. :rolleyes:
 
Timbeck2 said:
I've always hated being called a student. I have no idea why other than I would much rather be a graduate.
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Maybe pilot candidate? C'mon Tim, USAF even calls their "candidates" student pilots.
 
Timbeck2 said:
"Student" of anything, Mark.
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What about Keesler, student controller? :D

Actually I forget what they called us, but I crossed trained so I was called a retread by a few clowns.
 
FlySince9 said:
Ah, good-ol' Keesler! Now there's a memory... (a 44 year old memory)... but a good one!
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Good and BAD! Remember Pass Rd, the Triangle area, huge formations marching to class...starched fatigues, inspection everyday. I always thought KAFB was worse than basic! At least the first time I went through there in '68.
 
BalooAirService said:
agreed.. on most of the replies.
There is obviously MANY great first's,
IFR solo.
First type rating.
First jet plane.
First multi solo..
etc etc..
I was only talking about zero hr student though, earning your initial wings.
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Baloo, it may seem to you that there is something special about the "zero hr student earning his/her initial wings", and in fact I count all of the "extras" mentioned in your list as included in "first solo airplane". But I can assure you that if you (after earning your airplane wings and having flown for years) start as a rotor wing student, surrounded by other students, all typically young and without any flight experience, your airplane background not only gets erased, but is a drawback, since some helicopter reflexes are actually reversed in some critical situations. So when you get your helicopter rating "add on", the sense of accomplishment is actually greater than the original airplane solo or checkride, since you are forever "handicapped" when it comes to rotary wing flying.
Gliders/sailplanes, again a different category (note that your above list is all one category), don't have the dangerous "reverse reflex" issue and hence your power hours do help a bit, but you are still surrounded by young students (you may solo a glider at 14, as many do) and pilots who may fly circles around you in gliders. So getting your solo and rating in an engine-less aircraft is still a huge deal, and for me personally it was by far the most satisfying.
I should also mention that soaring has many challenging goalposts post-rating, and flying your first cross country (with no engine!) or your first ridge, or wave, each feel like a "first solo" in many ways.
 
FlySince9 said:
Ah, good-ol' Keesler! Now there's a memory... (a 44 year old memory)... but a good one!
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I had to be a "student" there three times. Air Traffic, 7 level school and TERPS. Best part about Keesler was the seafood and seeing it in my rear view mirror.
 
Timbeck2 said:
I had to be a "student" there three times. Air Traffic, 7 level school and TERPS. Best part about Keesler was the seafood and seeing it in my rear view mirror.
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I was there 4 times. Dad went thru radar maintenance course (a whole year I think), I went thru basic electronics (flunked out after 3-4 months), ATC school (5 month course), and AFCC NCO Academy. Yup the seafood was good and cheap, started my Comm/Instr at the aero club there going thru ATC school, but I do was glad to leave.
 
BalooAirService said:
Do you ever wish you could be a student (zero hour student - checkride) pilot again?
As crazy as it sounds, I sure do. And this time I could pass in half the time lol.
Click to expand...

Whenever you're on vacation, find a flight school and tell them you'd like a discovery flight. Ask the CFI if you can fly as you're a total bad arse on the Microsoft sim. Then grease a few landings and put it away:p
 
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danhagan said:
Whenever you're on vacation, find a flight school and tell them you'd like a discovery flight. Ask the CFI if you can fly as you're a total bad arse on the Microsoft sim. Then grease a few landings and put it away:p
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This has been a common joke that various high timers have supposedly done to people over the years, but considering that many schools now price discovery flights as loss leaders, or at best, break even, it's hard to suggest that it'd be as funny as it once was. You're essentially wasting their time and moving the 100 hour inspection clock closer to a paying customer's checkride.
 
denverpilot said:
This has been a common joke that various high timers have supposedly done to people over the years, but considering that many schools now price discovery flights as loss leaders, or at best, break even, it's hard to suggest that it'd be as funny as it once was. You're essentially wasting their time and moving the 100 hour inspection clock closer to a paying customer's checkride.
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Discovery flights in my area were basically about 15-30 minutes in length and were priced at the same rental price as if a student took it up. The 172's were not used unless the person requesting was large ... most were performed in one of the three 152's. Jump school next door made a killing on selling Christmas jump coupons (jump school equivalent of the discovery flight) that were never redeemed. Flight school noticed this and sold a bunch of non-used discovery flight gift certificates as well ... good idea for your local place if they are truly in a "loss leader" mentality.
 
Timbeck2 said:
No...just not student. To me, being called a student is like being called a lower life form. To me.
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LMAO. Even if I didn't know you were a controller, I probably could have guessed it based on that statement
 
you ever wish you could be a student (zero hour student - checkride) pilot again?

Nope
 
Timbeck2 said:
No...just not student. To me, being called a student is like being called a lower life form. To me.
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How about "plebe"? Neophyte? Tenderfoot? Virgin?
 
How about....
icon_slap.gif
 
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