Meet my very special pax - Part 1

WannFly

WannFly

Final Approach
Joined
Nov 28, 2016
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Priyo
took my dad flying today. he is the kind that takes isle seat in airliner so he doesnt have to look outside the window. took 2 weeks on convincing and we finally agreed that he would keep his eyes closed during take off and landing. he believes he has vertigo, which could be, but all my efforts to tell him that vertigo doesnt really kick in was in vain.

anyway, to my surprise, i glanced at him during climb-out and saw him enjoying the view of the tower and the general vicinity. he said he has never seen this view in his life and cherished every moment of it, he has been traveling around the world for last 50 years. at 74 he has been in almost every airliner and every country in the world. upon touchdown he said excellent landing :d ... now i dont know if that was paternal instinct or not.. may be it is :d.

Passenger brief was sweet and simple

1. Dad, dont touch anything
2. This is not the time to say - "Son, you are wrong"

next mission mom.. but she has major mobility issues and i just dont know how to get her on the wing, fold 3 times and get in the seat, darn low wings :( .. but will give it a shot nonetheless.

upload_2018-8-21_22-51-38.png
 
Did you tell him headset is on wrong? ;)

When I take my Stepmother up I rent a 172. It's just a lot easier for her to get in and out of. Doesn't cost too much more.

I can't imagine trying to load her into my plane, or her wanting to try.
 
Ravioli said:
Did you tell him headset is on wrong? ;)

When I take my Stepmother up I rent a 172. It's just a lot easier for her to get in and out of. Doesn't cost too much more.

I can't imagine trying to load her into my plane, or her wanting to try.
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thats a good idea. i will see if i can get checked out in one before they leave net week. Re: headset... we fight over everything, so i just kept my mouth shut :p
 
Nav lights on for safety? :)

I grew up in a Southern Baptist family - fire, brimstone, no dancing, no drinking etc etc. After I left for the Air Force, mom and dad finally relaxed their views. I remember when my girls were little we visited my folks and we went to the dog track. I told dad that I was going to go get a beer and asked if he needed anything. He told me a beer would be fine. :yikes:

So I drank a beer with my dad and it was a wonderful thing. I'd like to take him up (mom won't go she hates to fly) when I fly back to Arkansas, hopefully in December.
 
Ravioli said:
Did you tell him headset is on wrong? ;)

When I take my Stepmother up I rent a 172. It's just a lot easier for her to get in and out of. Doesn't cost too much more.

I can't imagine trying to load her into my plane, or her wanting to try.
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I did the same with my 86 yr old aunt. Rented a 172 (with CFI because I don't know the KBUF area) and took her flying over Niagara Falls and the area. Because she couldn't easily climb into the airplane, the airport brought over one of the little trucks with a lift on it. She sat on the lift, they brought it up level with the 172 door, and she slid onto the seat. I tipped the ground crew very well.
 
Timbeck2 said:
Nav lights on for safety? :)

I grew up in a Southern Baptist family - fire, brimstone, no dancing, no drinking etc etc. After I left for the Air Force, mom and dad finally relaxed their views. I remember when my girls were little we visited my folks and we went to the dog track. I told dad that I was going to go get a beer and asked if he needed anything. He told me a beer would be fine. :yikes:

So I drank a beer with my dad and it was a wonderful thing. I'd like to take him up (mom won't go she hates to fly) when I fly back to Arkansas, hopefully in December.
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Same here. I about fell out when home on Army leave one Christmas and my dad was drinking wine with Christmas dinner.

Where in AR? Grew up in MO bootheel town of Kennett (Tim Winters favorite place) just across AR border.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Yeah...awesome post and fantastic picture!!! Just think how proud he is of you becoming a pilot and owning your own plane :)

Maybe you'll have to fly him to a pancake breakfast or a lunch run before he heads back home.
 
Congrats, that's awesome. I remember taking my Dad 1st time, his biggest comment was how fast a GA plane is off the runway. "We're flying already?"
 
The OP is so fortunate. Papa Steingar was long dead when I started flying. Mama Steingar didn't want to have anything to do with it.
 
steingar said:
The OP is so fortunate. Papa Steingar was long dead when I started flying. Mama Steingar didn't want to have anything to do with it.
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sorry to hear that. I do feel fortunate, both can still travel around the world to visit me, but this might be the last trip for my mom, she just cant take 28 hrs travel anymore :(
 
Awesome.

My dad was my first passenger. He didn't even seem to mind when I did a go-around twice at the destination airport (in my defense the runway was 2,200 feet long; I trained at an airport with a 4,600 foot runway). "Third time's a charm" he said. Gotta love dads.
 
N3368K said:
Same here. I about fell out when home on Army leave one Christmas and my dad was drinking wine with Christmas dinner.

Where in AR? Grew up in MO bootheel town of Kennett (Tim Winters favorite place) just across AR border.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Not far from you. Jonesboro.
 
Great picture. So wonderful you could do that.

We were able to take my mom up twice, but not dad, he was in a wheelchair by the time we were flying and had no interest. But after he died we asked mom if she would like to fly out to the Outer Banks (1.25 hour) instead of six hours in a car and ferry. We were expecting a firm "No way," because she would not even drive on the beltline, she's very overcautious.

To our shock she said she would love to! And then told us a story of a flight she took when she was working in DC and went home to visit her folks. She was the only passenger that day, so the pilot invited her to sit right seat! I have no idea what sort of plane it was. Whatever commercial "regionals" they were using back in 1950 that were single pilot I'm guessing twin prop. Anyhow she absolutely loved it. She had never told us the story til then.

In this pic she is about 74. That's my brother on the right and our little Border Terrier.
Mom in plane.jpg

I'm thinking this is the only picture that exists of her in any airplane ever. I can't find a pic from our second trip with her. I had no idea when it was taken how precious it would become. She is 91 now and probably not going to be around much longer.
 
Outstanding that you were able to do that. My own dad is on O2 now and uses a walker. No way I can cram him into a light sport. Cherish the time you have with him; it won't last forever.
 
I'm thankful that I got to take my dad up in my Skyhawk before he passed away. My mother rarely left the house, no chance of getting her in the plane (she's also passed) but she did go with all of us in the early 1960s when the airport had a "Penny a Pound" flight. Today it would need to be at least a dime, maybe more.
 
Very cool story and pic. My dad was my first passenger and he has mentioned that flight enough times in the past couple of decades that I now realize it was pretty meaningful for him. At the time as a 17 year old fresh pilot, it just didn’t seem that significant. I was still a kid living with my parents, I spent a ton of time with them so what’s the big deal...

But now at about the age he was at the time, I could see it being quite an experience having your kid take you up in an airplane knowing that you, the adult, are not in control and can’t land the airplane.
 
Because of previous posts like this, I wanted to take my dad up also. I finally got to do so last month. Thanks to those who did and those who wished they could have, for sharing their experiences and thoughts.
 
Rushie said:
Great picture. So wonderful you could do that.

We were able to take my mom up twice, but not dad, he was in a wheelchair by the time we were flying and had no interest. But after he died we asked mom if she would like to fly out to the Outer Banks (1.25 hour) instead of six hours in a car and ferry. We were expecting a firm "No way," because she would not even drive on the beltline, she's very overcautious.

To our shock she said she would love to! And then told us a story of a flight she took when she was working in DC and went home to visit her folks. She was the only passenger that day, so the pilot invited her to sit right seat! I have no idea what sort of plane it was. Whatever commercial "regionals" they were using back in 1950 that were single pilot I'm guessing twin prop. Anyhow she absolutely loved it. She had never told us the story til then.

In this pic she is about 74. That's my brother on the right and our little Border Terrier.
View attachment 66562

I'm thinking this is the only picture that exists of her in any airplane ever. I can't find a pic from our second trip with her. I had no idea when it was taken how precious it would become. She is 91 now and probably not going to be around much longer.
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Is that the same person as in your avatar? Or is it just a strong resemblance?
 
asicer said:
Is that the same person as in your avatar? Or is it just a strong resemblance?
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No the avatar is me, many years ago. I didn't even know that pic existed til my sister in law sent it to me recently. I thought, cool, leather jacket and scarf kind of looks aviatorish maybe I should make that my avatar so I uploaded it but didn't hit "save" I thought, changed my mind and decided to keep the baby but left the page and it had changed. Now I can't find my old avatar (the baby in a car seat) but whatever.

People have told me that my mom and I strongly resemble each other.
 
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