PaulS
Touchdown! Greaser!
Don't scare her. A quick flight for breakfast, then back home. From Western Mass, Keene or Stow would be a good jaunt. A smooth clear morning would be best.
That's true, and not what I'm suggesting. Explain in as few words as possible anything that's happening that might surprise them. They don't have to know what everything on your panel does, how the circuit/pattern works, what runway number you're departing from, what you're about to ask ATC, etc. etc.I have found that over-explanation is easy to fall into and mostly works against a happy flight with a first-timer. YMMV.
No update yet unfortunately. My sister in law is getting married soon so we had 3 weekends in a row of wedding events. I had a feeling this would happen when we cancelled the last flight. We currently have a flight scheduled for the 15th, though I'll still be flying here and there while she watches the baby to stay proficient.
I read this as "No update yet, unfortunately my sister in law is getting married." And thought to myself "Well, I like flying more than most of my relatives, but I don't know that I'd say that out loud."
There was a student pilot on frequency having a bit of trouble navigating, so we talked about that a little, and how confusing it can be when you start flying. I think that helped her feel like I knew what I was doing as I wasn't having any trouble navigating or communicating.
Well we did make it up yesterday and had an awesome flight! Weather was great here in Western Mass. I booked the plane as early as I could, and kept the maneuvering to essential only (pattern entry).
My wife was fairly quiet for the first half, as approach was busy, but we got to talk more on the second half. There was a student pilot on frequency having a bit of trouble navigating, so we talked about that a little, and how confusing it can be when you start flying. I think that helped her feel like I knew what I was doing as I wasn't having any trouble navigating or communicating. We really got lucky with the weather. Visibility was great so I got to point out some distant landmarks. She said the landing was about what she was expecting. That's good because it wasn't a particularly great landing, though not a bad one either.
I made it a point not to badger her after we got down about what she thought. I remember my discovery flight was a bit overwhelming, and I just wanted to give her a chance to take it all in. On the ride home, she asked what we needed to take our son along with us, and suggested we should fly to grab some lunch as a family next time! Her only complaint was that the DC headset clamped on her earings a bit. Later in the evening I overheard her talking to a friend and mentioned that flying was amazing. Last night we talked a bit more about some places to go and she sounds really into checking out Block Island and Nantucket, so those are on the short list after a few more quick flights to keep warming up.
Soooo... I think it was a great success! Thanks to all of you for the advice! Now it looks like I'm in the market for a comfy headset for the wife, noise protection or a headset for a 2 year old, and a child seat that installs easier than our current car seat.
Flying gets me away from my relatives more quickly.I LIKE FLYING MORE THAN I LIKE MOST OF MY RELATIVES.
There. I said it.
She said the landing was about what she was expecting. That's good because it wasn't a particularly great landing, though not a bad one either.