I love celebrity pilots because they give a face to aviation. I respect anyone who can go through the hard work of becoming a pilot but especially those who have so much of the world at their fingertips. There is no shortcut to becoming a pilot. Not for anyone. We all have to learn the same maneuvers, concepts and knowledge. We all have to prove ourselves on a level playing field. From there, the celebs might take off higher, like John Travolta owning his own Boeing 707 and backyard runway. How awesome is that? Thanks for living the dream, pushing our imaginations higher.
They all started like us, one stall at a time. The 1st time FlyGirl Jill is in a stall, she’s terrified because the pilot is no help. She has to deal with the shriek of the alarm and falling out of the sky by herself. Luckily, most of us have flight instructors to take us through that. Training is everything in flying. Some student pilots pull back on the yoke, trying to get the plane to fly higher, but that is exactly the wrong thing to do. Training from a certificated instructor shows you how to respond correctly to stalls.
My book FlyGirl isn’t meant to scare anyone about flying. It’s just the way Jill came into flying – a rough start, going about it the wrong way, puts her in terror. She learns that impatience is just a lack of faith in yourself. When Jill learns to believe in herself, she takes to the sky the right way, powered by knowledge and training, knowing she can do this. It’s because she didn’t believe she could become a pilot that she took ill-fated shortcuts.
Another celeb, Harrison Ford, said when he was on set and saw the pilots do their thing, he wondered if he could do something that hard, that focused, that intense. He could. And even added helicopter flying which is a different ballgame from fixed wing. He loves flying so much that he dedicates his time and money taking kids for rides in the sky to show them just why he’s an enthusiast. That’s awesome. Thanks, Harrison!
Check out Angelina Jolie’s reason for becoming a pilot in the blog: FlyGirl Angelina Jolie.
What dream could you reach if you believed you could? Is flying too hard? Can you do it? Read FlyGirl’s terrifying beginning and what she did to get over it. Because there might come a time when you are up against a wall in your training and nothing can get you through … except yourself.
How did you handle your 1st stall? Do you feel the same about stalls as Jill?
Stalls suck. Don’t do them. Read FlyGirl.
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