Astronauts, Free Flight Lessons, & The Embraer 145 – Part 1

This is the story of how I got started in aviation and what led me to creating ThePilotReport.com.  Now I’m no novel writer so go easy on my story telling skills – I’m sensitive lol.  So here goes nothing!

When I was younger all I ever wanted to do when I grew up was to become an astronaut.  As a kid, space interested me like no other.  I had all kinds of space toys, space wallpaper, and even watched all the shuttle launches I could.

It wasn’t until some years later that I would decide to become a pilot instead.  When I looked into to what it took to become an astronaut I quickly realized I didn’t care enough about becoming a Doctor of physics, math, etc.  I just wanted to fly.  And my first opportunity at the flight yoke was during a Young Eagles day where I flew a Lancair 320 – not bad for a first small plane ride, right?  After that, I was hooked and I knew I had to become a pilot.

Fast forward to my junior high school years to one day in gym class.  We were playing dodge ball at the time when a young lady entered the gym.  She was there to visit the gym teacher.  I overheard them talking about what the young lady had been up to when I heard her make mention of some free flight lessons she was taking.

Well I heard the words “free flight lessons” and I had to know more!  It turns out the young lady had been accepted into a program at Daniel Webster College called Aviation Horizons.  Aviation Horizons was a subsidized flight training program for “at risk” teens where you could get the ground and flight training required to earn a Recreational Pilot certificate – all you had to do was pay for your check ride and nothing else!  There was only one problem, I wasn’t exactly considered “at risk.”

I did some digging and found the contact information for this Aviation Horizons program.  My mother and I drove over to Daniel Webster College to have a visit with the program administrator.  As it turned it, the gentleman running Aviation Horizons considered all teenagers to be “at risk” based on his definition.  And what part of that isn’t true to some degree?

After getting accepted into Aviation Horizons, I promptly began my flight training on November 22nd, 1996.  At the time I was just 15 years old, and in the state of New Hampshire, I hadn’t even reached legal driving age.  Because of the FAA age requirements it was going to be a long time before I could officially earn any pilot certificate too.

So I just flew my butt of until my 16th birthday when I conducted my first solo.  First obstacle complete!  But, I had a whole year yet until I turned 17 and could do my check ride.  So I kept on flying.  At that point I was working at the Midfield Cafe as a dishwasher by day, after which I would walk across the ramp to my flight lessons in the afternoon.

Because I was accruing so much flight time, I decided it prudent to spring for my Private Pilot certificate instead of the Recreational certificate.  Besides, it came with so many less rules and restrictions.  Everything was going smoothly and I was on schedule to take my Private Pilot check ride on my 17th birthday.  The day of truth came and I’m happy to report my check ride was a success and I was officially a Private Pilot.

Around the same time I was having to make decisions on what to do for college and a career.  Flying seemed so second nature so I decided to go for it.  Since I had started my flying through Daniel Webster College it was natural for me to check out their program, though it ended up being way too expensive for my taste.  Next visit was Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, FL.  FIT was a nice school even though the facilities seemed older at the time, and up until this point it was my favorite school – but my college visits weren’t over yet!

Come back and visit us on Friday, July 16th for the second part of my “Getting Started” story!

Clear Skies & Calm Winds,

Len @ ThePilotReport.com