Eagle I
Pre-takeoff checklist
As a woman, I've been following this thread with great interest. At first I was very disheartened by the misogynistic tone of some of the posts, but then plenty of people, including many men, jumped in to defend Gulfstream Girl. To them, I say, thank you. You've restored my faith in the basic goodness of people.
As a struggling student pilot, I can't begin to tell most of you what it's like to show up at the FBO to see only men, to be taught only by men who talk largely about "manly" things, to feel like something of an intruder in a man's world. I suppose it didn't help my training much that my CFI liked to joke, upon hearing a woman on the radio, "Oh no, another girl pilot, it's getting dangerous out here." And that was one of the milder things he said concerning women. I suppose I should have left this flight school right then and there, but instead I giggled nervously, wanting only to fit in. Sadly, I have since left this flight school, never to return, my training on hold for now, until I find a place that just feels better.
To all those who think GG has been given a huge break because of her looks and her gender, I would ask: Were you to have been offered the same opportunity to sit in the right seat of a Gulfstream at 250 TT and learn, would you have declined, citing safety reasons, because you didn't have enough hours, and feared what would happen if the captain had a heart attack? If anyone answers yes, I'll either be very impressed with your honesty, or your bull****!
Whatever my issues and experiences are, I'll leave you with this thought. Before I discovered this thread, I had never heard of Gulfstream Girl. Now I've looked at her Facebook page, and watched some of her videos, and I have to say, I think she's cool. Yes, dare I say it, a role model even! I watched that one video of her taking a student on a flight over New York City in the evening, and her enthusiasm for aviation was apparent. Her natural comfort in the cockpit was comforting. And I wished that my first few hours of flight had been with her, instead of with men who were so insecure that they had to be all over the controls, talking incessantly about how much they knew, and how good they were.
As a struggling student pilot, I can't begin to tell most of you what it's like to show up at the FBO to see only men, to be taught only by men who talk largely about "manly" things, to feel like something of an intruder in a man's world. I suppose it didn't help my training much that my CFI liked to joke, upon hearing a woman on the radio, "Oh no, another girl pilot, it's getting dangerous out here." And that was one of the milder things he said concerning women. I suppose I should have left this flight school right then and there, but instead I giggled nervously, wanting only to fit in. Sadly, I have since left this flight school, never to return, my training on hold for now, until I find a place that just feels better.
To all those who think GG has been given a huge break because of her looks and her gender, I would ask: Were you to have been offered the same opportunity to sit in the right seat of a Gulfstream at 250 TT and learn, would you have declined, citing safety reasons, because you didn't have enough hours, and feared what would happen if the captain had a heart attack? If anyone answers yes, I'll either be very impressed with your honesty, or your bull****!
Whatever my issues and experiences are, I'll leave you with this thought. Before I discovered this thread, I had never heard of Gulfstream Girl. Now I've looked at her Facebook page, and watched some of her videos, and I have to say, I think she's cool. Yes, dare I say it, a role model even! I watched that one video of her taking a student on a flight over New York City in the evening, and her enthusiasm for aviation was apparent. Her natural comfort in the cockpit was comforting. And I wished that my first few hours of flight had been with her, instead of with men who were so insecure that they had to be all over the controls, talking incessantly about how much they knew, and how good they were.