Return to Flying (PPSEL cont)
The continuation of the PPSEL posts...Around the time of 9/11 I was doing a lot of travelling via the airlines for business. Every week, in fact, I would grab a flight to my latest client. By the time spring of 2002 came around I was really annoyed with the hassles of flying commercially. I was typically "randomly selected" at least once on each trip for searching, and sometimes twice. Sorry, there was nothing random about that. I travelled in a suit with my briefcase (computer) and roll-on. What a safe bet! But, that's a whole different blog.
So, in the spring of 2002 I was fed up with the commercial routine and decided I was going to get checked out by a flight instructor again and buy an airplane. Most of my flights were within several hundred miles of home, so a single engine aircraft could certainly do the job. Of course, I didn't count on my company sending me to a client across the country once I'd bought my airplane! Ah well! So, I got myself a flight review and began renting and flying whenever I could. Including during the week when I was away at a client. The journey had begun again.
About a year later, I was ready and found my aircraft. I used an aircraft broker who found me a 1973 Skylane, in my price range, in Colorado. I stopped in on a return trip from California and took a test flight. It flew well, was in good condition, and the price worked. There was still the pre-buy inspection to do, so I flew home. Within two weeks, the pre-buy was completed satisfactorily, financing was arranged, and the aircraft was ready for delivery. I was short on time and didn't have an instrument rating at the time, so my broker flew it East for delivery.
Now, there's a whole story behind the "attempted" delivery of the aircraft. The time of year was early March and there were a number of weather systems across the country. I'll save this story for another entry.
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Do you have a story about your first lesson or aircraft? Feel free to leave a comment and share your aviation experience.
Labels: Pilot Certificate
posted by Shawn @ 6:23 PM
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