Excellent. That was my ambition when I was young. I took lessons but ran out of money to actually get my ticket. I flew a Piper Cherokee Warrior. It was so much fun just practicing touch and go landings at a little used airport. Still, it's an expensive undertaking unless you plan to make it a career.
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152 sats \ 5 replies \ @ek 12 Nov
That was my ambition when I was young.
My first idea as a child what I want to be when I grow up was to become a rescue helicopter pilot. I wanted to help people but the thought of directly being responsible for the life of someone was too much. Would I be able to handle the pressure? Flying a helicopter seemed more manageable to me than to be a paramedic.1 Then I can just fly the people who actually save lives to where they need to be.
Still, it's an expensive undertaking unless you plan to make it a career.
My dream is to also have a commercial pilot license (CPI) and become a certified flight instructor (CFI) so I can get paid flying by teaching other people how to fly but that's obviously still far away since I don't even have a PPL.
I did have some flying lessons in a glider plane (which got me hooked immediately) but that was a long time ago and I didn't like how much time was spent on the ground vs in the air because it was in a club. Way cheaper but I would gladly pay more money to be done faster (and not have to deal with socializing, ha).

Footnotes

  1. /cc @Public_N_M_E šŸ‘€ ā†©
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I was in my mid 20s and my instructor was a year younger than me. He was this crazy Norwegian guy. We became friends. His goal was to become an Alaskan bush pilot. I didn't hear from him for a while, and then he sent me a postcard from Alaska. Never heard from him again.
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You're citing me but I don't remember what for šŸ¤£šŸ¤£ but yes...exactly this, I 100% understand this mentality.
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25 sats \ 2 replies \ @ek 12 Nov
šŸ‘€ cited you because of this:
Flying a helicopter seemed more manageable to me than to be a paramedic.
I 100% understand this mentality.
which mentality? šŸ‘€
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Oh, I thought that sounded like something I'd have said, but I couldn't recall in what context.
The mentality of wanting to help others and finding a way in which you can achieve that, even if you are not directly involved and are only an ancillary piece to their recovery. "Then I can just fly the people who actually save lives to where they need to be." That mentality really resonated with me. I may not have the skills to save someone's life... But if I could learn the skills to get someone who could to where they needed to be. Then in some way, I'd have helped. That really resonated with me.
Part of me for a long time wanted to change lanes and go into physical therapy and help athletes return to tier 1 shape and capabilities. I'm never going to win a superbowl... But I could be a small part of someone else's story who could, and that would be something to be proud of.
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25 sats \ 0 replies \ @ek 12 Nov
But I could be a small part of someone else's story who could, and that would be something to be proud of.
šŸ’Æ
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Have the time to devote to it. If you can fly at least 3x per week, you will do it in fewer hours (and it will be a lot cheaper) than only doing 1 lesson/wk
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5 sats \ 0 replies \ @ek 12 Nov
Good point. Do you have a pilot license?
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Get after it ek šŸ’ŖšŸ’ŖšŸ’Ŗ
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Don't get too carried away, it could cost you your life. If you have leaded teeth, be prepared to removed them. Ahahah!
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36 sats \ 2 replies \ @ek 12 Nov
What do you mean with "don't get too carried away?" Don't get too carried away with what?
If you have leaded teeth, be prepared to removed them.
Interesting, I already did my medical a while ago (might have to redo it) and I think this wasn't mentioned. This might only apply to commercial pilots.
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I was referring to the pilot's license. I know it's challenging and it's many people's dream, but it scares me to know that the slightest mistake can result in death.
This might only apply to commercial pilots.
Maybe that's the way it is.
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38 sats \ 0 replies \ @ek 12 Nov
the slightest mistake can result in death.
I don't think that's true, you can even get into a spin and recover as long as you don't panic and have enough altitude. It's just a matter of training. I think it can be as safe as driving a car. Maybe even safer since there aren't as many other idiots in the air that can kill you, haha
For example, in this video, you can see all he needs to do is to push the rudder with his feet to recover from the spin, no hands needed:
Also, don't forget that planes can glide. Even helicopters can glide via autorotation.
I have to admit though, that last "push" sounded a little concerned from the CFI though haha
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