How I spent 9/11/2021, twenty years later

D

digitalpilotnm

Filing Flight Plan
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Apr 22, 2021
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Display name:
John Brown
Hello fellow aviators!
Twenty years ago aviation was used as a tool to cause mass destruction and death in our country. It was a sad day for all of us and has had a lasting and profound impact on our ability to fly. While that day robbed us of many things, it robbed our youth the ability to come out to the airport and "hang out" with airplanes, aviators, maintenance folks and the like. It robbed our youth the ability to explore, to touch, to feel, to smell, to hear, to see, to participate in and learn more about aerospace. I remember going out to the airport as a kid and the freedom to wander around looking at airplanes. 9/11 made sure that can't happen anymore!
frowning.png


So today, I chose to donate my time to our local EAA Chapter 179 and participate in Young Eagles. Today was a great day! Our chapter flew 31 young people today. I flew 5 of them in a Cessna C-172 that I rented from our local FBO (Bode Aviation). It was awesome, the energy, the excitement of both kids and parents, the ability to help our local youth have a first hand experience with aerospace / aviation.

I had the honor of flying two young people, a brother and a sister, who's flight with me today was their very first time ever above the ground. Yup, these two had never been in any form of a "flying machine" before. Today they got to see our big blue marble from several thousand feet AGL, and even control the aircraft a bit. They were amazed at how small things looked from up above.

I also had the honor of flying a young man who was a bit nervous at first, but by the time we landed, and after he had taken the controls, he exclaimed "Mom, I LOVE AIRPLANES"

While the above might sound like me tooting my horn, I hope that it actually is inspiration for all of us Aviators here. Go out, be active and participate in EAA's Young Eagles, help a local scout troop earn their aviation badges. Each and everyone of us is an ambassador of General Aviation. Go Promote!!

I chose to spend the day showing the positive of aviation to our youth.

Have a great weekend.
 
Depends on the airport. We have a viewing deck right next to the ramp that anyone can come out and watch planes at. No security gates or anything.
 
You did a great job, on a very difficult day.. You did not toot your own horn. You did what we normal American GA pilots would expect you to do. Next time I'm in the ABQ area (soon) , I'll pm you, and take you to dinner. Well done.
 
digitalpilotnm said:
Hello fellow aviators!
Twenty years ago aviation was used as a tool to cause mass destruction and death in our country. It was a sad day for all of us and has had a lasting and profound impact on our ability to fly. While that day robbed us of many things, it robbed our youth the ability to come out to the airport and "hang out" with airplanes, aviators, maintenance folks and the like. It robbed our youth the ability to explore, to touch, to feel, to smell, to hear, to see, to participate in and learn more about aerospace. I remember going out to the airport as a kid and the freedom to wander around looking at airplanes. 9/11 made sure that can't happen anymore!
frowning.png


So today, I chose to donate my time to our local EAA Chapter 179 and participate in Young Eagles. Today was a great day! Our chapter flew 31 young people today. I flew 5 of them in a Cessna C-172 that I rented from our local FBO (Bode Aviation). It was awesome, the energy, the excitement of both kids and parents, the ability to help our local youth have a first hand experience with aerospace / aviation.

I had the honor of flying two young people, a brother and a sister, who's flight with me today was their very first time ever above the ground. Yup, these two had never been in any form of a "flying machine" before. Today they got to see our big blue marble from several thousand feet AGL, and even control the aircraft a bit. They were amazed at how small things looked from up above.

I also had the honor of flying a young man who was a bit nervous at first, but by the time we landed, and after he had taken the controls, he exclaimed "Mom, I LOVE AIRPLANES"

While the above might sound like me tooting my horn, I hope that it actually is inspiration for all of us Aviators here. Go out, be active and participate in EAA's Young Eagles, help a local scout troop earn their aviation badges. Each and everyone of us is an ambassador of General Aviation. Go Promote!!

I chose to spend the day showing the positive of aviation to our youth.

Have a great weekend.
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Good on you.
 
Nothing gets me more excited than being the reason a kid has a big smile. It warms my cold jaded heart. Bravo sir.
 
I have so many stories from flying Young Eagles. The excitement and enthusiasm and joy from the kids is worth every moment of it!
 
digitalpilotnm said:
Hello fellow aviators!
Twenty years ago aviation was used as a tool to cause mass destruction and death in our country. It was a sad day for all of us and has had a lasting and profound impact on our ability to fly. While that day robbed us of many things, it robbed our youth the ability to come out to the airport and "hang out" with airplanes, aviators, maintenance folks and the like. It robbed our youth the ability to explore, to touch, to feel, to smell, to hear, to see, to participate in and learn more about aerospace. I remember going out to the airport as a kid and the freedom to wander around looking at airplanes. 9/11 made sure that can't happen anymore!
frowning.png


So today, I chose to donate my time to our local EAA Chapter 179 and participate in Young Eagles. Today was a great day! Our chapter flew 31 young people today. I flew 5 of them in a Cessna C-172 that I rented from our local FBO (Bode Aviation). It was awesome, the energy, the excitement of both kids and parents, the ability to help our local youth have a first hand experience with aerospace / aviation.

I had the honor of flying two young people, a brother and a sister, who's flight with me today was their very first time ever above the ground. Yup, these two had never been in any form of a "flying machine" before. Today they got to see our big blue marble from several thousand feet AGL, and even control the aircraft a bit. They were amazed at how small things looked from up above.

I also had the honor of flying a young man who was a bit nervous at first, but by the time we landed, and after he had taken the controls, he exclaimed "Mom, I LOVE AIRPLANES"

While the above might sound like me tooting my horn, I hope that it actually is inspiration for all of us Aviators here. Go out, be active and participate in EAA's Young Eagles, help a local scout troop earn their aviation badges. Each and everyone of us is an ambassador of General Aviation. Go Promote!!

I chose to spend the day showing the positive of aviation to our youth.

Have a great weekend.
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Fantastic. I still miss ABQ. I left one year before 9/11.
 
A little off topic...

But on 9/09 I was contacted by a gent who had a daughter that needed some help. Two years ago she begrudgingly went along to watch her younger brothers get a young eagles ride.

She even finally agreed to take one, at 14 yrs old.

So at a EAA chapter meeting earlier in the week she was directed to my son, in hopes of getting connected with me since I’m an CFI.

In two years she has taken the sporty ground course a few times, and done NOTHING but practically obsess over flying! Just keeps running up against dead ends with her father, a sharp guy!, trying to figure out this aviation thing on their own.

We spent several hours but got her signed up for the written, she doesn’t care about driving so hasn’t, but is gonna now since we need the ID for her student pilot cert, got her a Med express account and connected with a AME (the one local one they googled has yet to return a call! Geesh), and got her her FIRST instructed lesson.

Two years of dead ends but you couldn’t tell it! TONS of support from her family, but frankly not a lot from the aviation “community”.

I was a little horrified to learn the airport manager, a stalled student pilot, who knows the local pilots including me, has had her and her siblings there CLEANING BATHROOMS (heck, it’s still aviation, right?!!!) but never really helped.

Anyway, I was honored to be the one to FINALLY get her moving forward. A TON of fun. That was yesterday, so pretty close to 9/11.

And she got her first lesson in a Vashon Ranger, there’s like 40 in the world... Glad to see she stuck with it. She even knows who Bernoulli is... wow!

Tools
 
Tools said:
A little off topic...

…she doesn’t care about driving so hasn’t, but is gonna now since we need the ID…

Tools
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Why a DL? Doesn’t your state have a valid ID card?
 
Ya, doesn’t have ANYTHING, so gonna get a learners permit which works too...
 
I thought a birth certificate worked, but apparently not.
 
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