Girl-friend is interested in flying

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guardrail

Pre-takeoff checklist
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guardrail
So the girl I'm seeing mentioned yesterday she's interested in getting her PPL(certificate, whatever). She's graduating this week with her MBA and wants a new challenge. She is taking some time off work for the holidays and asked if we could go up and let her see if she gets the bug. Initially I was quite excited, but then some questions started coming to mind.

  1. Should I take her up to let her feel it out(we've been flying before, but not in a 'let me show you how' capacity) or get her a discovery/intro flight lesson at a local school? (I'm not a CFI)
  2. Has anyone had a S.O. encroach on 'their' hobby? Listen I'm not saying I don't want her to be a pilot, but this sort of my thing, not hers. She's already markedly hotter than me and now she's wants to edge into my 'coolness' zone. What will I have after that?!? This just seems bad. /sarcasm :rofl:
  3. How can I fly with her in the future if she knows all the things I'm doing wrong?!?:eek:
  4. Anyone with common experience have some advice??:dunno:
Mostly it's been slow at work and I need some entertainment but I thought the brilliant minds on PoA would have endless knowledge opinions on the matter. :D
 
guardrail said:
So the girl I'm seeing mentioned yesterday she's interested in getting her PPL(certificate, whatever). She's graduating this week with her MBA and wants a new challenge. She is taking some time off work for the holidays and asked if we could go up and let her see if she gets the bug. Initially I was quite excited, but then some questions started coming to mind.

  1. Should I take her up to let her feel it out(we've been flying before, but not in a 'let me show you how' capacity) or get her a discovery/intro flight lesson at a local school? (I'm not a CFI)
  2. Has anyone had a S.O. encroach on 'their' hobby? Listen I'm not saying I don't want her to be a pilot, but this sort of my thing, not hers. She's already markedly hotter than me and now she's wants to edge into my 'coolness' zone. What will I have after that?!? This just seems bad. /sarcasm :rofl:
  3. How can I fly with her in the future if she knows all the things I'm doing wrong?!?:eek:
  4. Anyone with common experience have some advice??:dunno:
Mostly it's been slow at work and I need some entertainment but I thought the brilliant minds on PoA would have endless knowledge opinions on the matter. :D
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Go buy her a big rock and propose.
 
Might consider taking her to check out a donkey show, just to make sure there aren't any issues you aren't aware of.
 
Dump her now, and PM me with her number.

Really, I don't see any downside. You like flying, you like her, she likes you(well....), she likes flying.
 
Just make sure you are always flying something more dangerous then she flies.
 
There's definitely pressure - you want to seem 'cool' to your significant other, and that's hard to do when she's in a position to know when you're screwing it all up. The good news is that you'll get over it.

One of the most nerve-wracking flight's I've ever done was with my wife riding jumpseat back when I was still new to my (then) airline and airplane. She's been flying with me in GA airplanes, and even in various Citations over the years, but I had thousands of hours in those planes, and this was an airliner that was new to me. The flight went great, but let me tell you, I'd rather have the FAA sitting there than my wife! :)

Of course, whenever I joke about surprising her at an airplane she's flying, her response is, "No f***ing way is that going to happen. Hear that? That's the sound of me dumping the crew oxygen down to a level that won't allow jumpseaters!"
 
I say get her an introductory flight. Although I think my dad would say he wishes my mom and I hadn't gotten our license's so that we wouldn't "argue" with him so much and point out things he should/shouldn't be doing. I've learned, when he's flying, to just sit there and smile, and talk on the radio so that he can randomly chime in with "funny" puns and nobody has to know what airplane it is coming from. :rolleyes:

My favorite being one time when I checked in on flight following, and the controller said something to the extent of "what are you heading up to XYZ for" and my dad chimed in and said "stop hitting on my daughter" the controller handed me off very soon after that.
 
Wha? The girl's a college grad, soon to have a biz degree. She can buy her own into flight. I say start charging her for fuel and oil.

Oh - and don't forget that phone number. :smilewinkgrin:
 
I vote for an introductory / discovery flight. She'll get the quick summary of how an airplane fly's, and she'll probably be able do more flying with the CFI than if you were flying. She'll also get to fly left seat without you being stuck in right seat. :) She may also be more relaxed and less stressed without her bf judging her.

On my discovery flight, I controlled elevator/elevator after 500 feet up, and maintained control until about 250 agl before landing. CFI did rudder and everything else - made me think flying was easier than I initially thought. :)

As far as your last concern about her correcting you - learn to live with it. After you're married, she'll be correcting everything you do from then on. As my other married friends have done - just hand her the pair between your legs over to the wife for safe keeping. :)

This spring, I'll be paying for a few lessons for my other half - I want him to at least be able to get the plane on the ground safely and talk to ATC to get help. Doesn't need to land on a 3500x50 runway (home airport) with cross winds, but on a long & wide runway where ever ATC directs..hopefully with less crosswind correction required. Fortunately, an un-towered 6000x100 runway is 4.4nm from home airport for quick easy practice. :)
 
guardrail said:
So the girl I'm seeing mentioned yesterday she's interested in getting her PPL(certificate, whatever). She's graduating this week with her MBA and wants a new challenge. She is taking some time off work for the holidays and asked if we could go up and let her see if she gets the bug. Initially I was quite excited, but then some questions started coming to mind.

  1. Should I take her up to let her feel it out(we've been flying before, but not in a 'let me show you how' capacity) or get her a discovery/intro flight lesson at a local school? (I'm not a CFI)
  2. Has anyone had a S.O. encroach on 'their' hobby? Listen I'm not saying I don't want her to be a pilot, but this sort of my thing, not hers. She's already markedly hotter than me and now she's wants to edge into my 'coolness' zone. What will I have after that?!? This just seems bad. /sarcasm :rofl:
  3. How can I fly with her in the future if she knows all the things I'm doing wrong?!?:eek:
  4. Anyone with common experience have some advice??:dunno:
Mostly it's been slow at work and I need some entertainment but I thought the brilliant minds on PoA would have endless knowledge opinions on the matter. :D
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Dude!

That's a good thing, take her up and let her try her hand at it, walk her through a few turns etc.

If she likes it find her a good CFI. You two will learn alot more andbecome better
pilots for it.

Wish my girl wanted to learn to fly, I'm a CFI too with my own plane... On well.
 
guardrail said:
Has anyone had a S.O. encroach on 'their' hobby? Listen I'm not saying I don't want her to be a pilot, but this sort of my thing, not hers. She's already markedly hotter than me and now she's wants to edge into my 'coolness' zone. What will I have after that?!? This just seems bad. /sarcasm :rofl:
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Pictures are needed for us to be the judge of that
 
Take her up and give her the controls..... She will let you know the next step..

Trying to limit another persons dreams NEVER works out for the best...:no:
 
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2 of us, 2 planes.

We bought a 150 for her private. I did some of her training though I am not a CFI. Even if I were a CFI, I like the idea of a second opinion on setting her loose. There were also stressful times and I would not recommend you being associated with the cause of that stress. She now has a RV-9A and is working on instrument in it.

Having her licensed has proved to be helpful especially on instrument flights.
 

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24/7 isn't all it's cracked up to be. If you want it to be a together thing,go for it ,and find another hobby for a break.
 
Why people recommend discovery flight, he can take her up, do some steep turns and stalls if she doesn't freak out then you know
 
15 posts before we get to a picture request? You guys are loosers...... :)
 
I took Margy flying the first time before we were married on the pretense of "looking at the fall colors." Of course the effect was lost when we struck a turkey buzzard and had to leave the plane in Luray (fortunately my brother was Voice of Luray and put his fiancee on the air instead and drove us back to Dulles).

The second time she flew with me, she got ill as we were making tight turns looking for her daughters summer camp.

I made plans to fly the club 172 to Oshkosh. She sheepishly asked if she could come along. After 7 hours of flying she decided she wasn't going to do that again. After a week or so of hanging out at Oshkosh with Oshkosh people she decided I needed to teach her how to navigate so she'd have something to do on the way home.

By the time she got home she had gone from "I better take a pinch hitter course" to "I want to get my pilot's license."

She flew out to Oshkosh the next year with the ink still wet on her certificate. By the next year we had purchased the Navion (I had told the finance person the plane was to be titled in my name and my fiancee's and they advised against it. I had to explain there wasn't going to be any airplane otherwise).

Of course she wants to fly half the legs (or her current strategy since I got my instrument rating is that she should fly when it's nice since I will fly when it isn't). She also went to running an aviation program at the middle school she taught out to being in the education department at the Smithsonian Air and Space museum. I tag along behind her now rather than the other way around.
 
docmirror said:
Wha? The girl's a college grad, soon to have a biz degree. She can buy her own into flight. I say start charging her for fuel and oil.

Oh - and don't forget that phone number. :smilewinkgrin:
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She already offered to pay. She's highly independent, almost combative about proving she is self sufficient, etc. Im the same way so she doesn't need to pay for my plane costs, lol.
 
TazzyTazzy said:
...After you're married, she'll be correcting everything you do from then on. As my other married friends have done - just hand her the pair between your legs over to the wife for safe keeping. :)
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We both have been married and (relatively) recently divorced. There won't be any rocks or marriage anytime soon.


As for pics or fail, I'll see what I can find on my phone that is forum appropriate. :D
 
Eastern Europe? Uh-- well, um; Have you, gee - I mean are you sure? Lets see what I'm trying to say is; did you ever see - the Crying Game? Ya know?
 
Here's a nice professional pic :)

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You could do what I did. I took a buddy and his son on a 50 miles hamburger run and let the kid fly the whole trip except for the landing. He was hooked. It was a no wind, smooth as glass kind of day. 2.5 hours on the day.
I did a young eagles event once where before we were done, the kid was asking when could he start taking lessons and where.
You never know where the next new pilot is coming from but I certainly don't want to discourage it.
 
Sac Arrow said:
Might consider taking her to check out a donkey show, just to make sure there aren't any issues you aren't aware of.
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Made me think of a favorite Kevin Smith movie.
 
Only way you're going to have a happy long term relationship is to support what they want to do and make sure you have someone that will support what you want to do. Support at a minimum means you take interest in it and you don't complain about it. You do that because you care about them and they care about you. You also need to make sure the person isn't someone that's going to want to do things that causes major financial strain.

The moment that the above process breaks down is the moment a relationship is doomed to fail. I just cringe when I see someone get married when it's obvious the above isn't true and the result is always eventually the same.
 
Guardrail;

My suggestion would be to purchase a discovery flight as one of her Christmas gifts. This will pair her up with an instructor, be loggable training time, and give her a taste of what the training will be like.

If she comes back into the FBO with a big grin and can't quit talking about the experience, then you have a real winner and can work out how to gift more training time.
 
After growing half a century old, and being married for thirty years of that, I could care less what any woman wants. They don't even know what they want.

Evil vindictive creatures they are. Don't let any devil woman tell you your business.

Good luck.
 
txflyer said:
After growing half a century old, and being married for thirty years of that, I could care less what any woman wants. They don't even know what they want.

Evil vindictive creatures they are. Don't let any devil woman tell you your business.

Good luck.
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Agreed....

I was married for 33 years.....

Right up to the point where she said " either the plane goes, or I file for divorce"

I wish her well............. But my plane is still in my hangar..:yes::yes::):)
 
N801BH said:
Agreed....

I was married for 33 years.....

Right up to the point where she said " either the plane goes, or I file for divorce"

I wish her well............. But my plane is still in my hangar..:yes::yes::):)
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" You've never really met your wife until you meet her in divorce court." -- my Dad
 
What everyone has said, buy her a discovery flight and pawn the pain of marrying and divorcing her off on some poor CFI.:lol:
 
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