It is so worth it to fly kids. I've never been nervous and 95% of kids are grateful, funny, smart, respectful, and engaged. Once one set of girls was way too cool for their own good, but they still said thanks at the end. We do high school and middle school kids. Most of the time, they can't stop smiling and the younger ones are quivering with excitement when they land to tell others about what they did.
Funny: One kid asked if I could do a knife edge maneuver. In a Tecnam Eaglet? Nope, but you can look at the little houses and cars and do some shallow turns.
Inspiring: (Second hand) The young lady was nervous about going up, but she overcame that and decided to go. Once up, the pilot offered to let her fly. Wide eyed, she said she couldn't do that. But he insisted and again, she stepped up and took the controls. Being a CFI, he had her do turns, ascent/descents, etc. As she flew he looked at her in surprise thinking she was a ringer. But nope, never flew before as she held altitude, heading, and speed. She looked at him and said, "I can do this!". The pilot laughed and said, "Yes, you certainly can".
Wonder: The one girl kept saying over and over, "This is so beautiful!". The other said, "It seems scary on the ground, but up here it isn't!". The third one said,"This is the coolest thing I've ever done in my life!"
Heart breaking: There was a conference for the blind over in D.C., so some of the parents arranged to come over with their sight-impaired/blind children for airplane rides. The flight school offered free rides. One girl wanted to fly over Pennsylvania, so the pilot took her up to the MD/PA state line and circled. Though she couldn't see, she was thrilled. She could feel the vibration of the plane and the G-forces as he circled. They actually took her up a second time.
The second boy was profoundly blind, white cane and all. He held my arm as I guided him to the plane. I took his cane and we helped him up over the wing into the cockpit. He was all smiles as we buckled him in. The pilot latched the canopy and the boy waved out at the ground crew and parents he couldn't see. After the flight he was all smiles, thanking the pilot and everyone around him. I gave him back his cane and guided him back to the fenced area. He went on about how wonderful it was and described what it felt like to take off, turn, listen to the engine and the wind and finally land.
I look for and treasure these moments when doing YE, even just as ground crew. Flight is wonderful but sharing it with kids is even better. Give it a second try and I think you'll find it provides some of the most precious moments you'll ever have as a pilot.
