05/08 - Learning to Fly Sometimes Takes Ingenuity

05/08 - Learning to Fly Sometimes Takes Ingenuity

By Amy Gesch

I’m not exactly sure what elephants have to do with airplanes, but apparently there was some connection in my then four-year-old mind. My mom, brother, and I had just gotten home from the zoo and somehow my mother and eight-year-old brother had gotten on the subject of what he wanted to do in the future. Feeling a bit left out I chimed in: “I want to be an airplane pilot. Or a train driver.” To this day I’m not sure where either of those statements came from (especially the one about driving trains).

Over the years I seemed to forget about what I said that day. I became absorbed in emulating my new stepsister. She was everything I wanted to be, it seemed, and as the second youngest child I felt somewhere lost in the shuffle between my older brothers and my half-brother. I wanted to ride horses like my sister did at a friend’s farm, so at the tender age of five I managed to convince my mother to let me take riding lessons at a nearby stable.

Desire to fly discovered
Norberg Farm’s location (Menominee Falls, Wisconsin) was close to a small airport that’s no longer there called Aero Park. I always looked up when a small plane passed overhead while riding in the outdoor riding ring.

I refuse to admit that Top Gun had any influence on my desire to fly, and I’m sticking to that story. However, the clips of the sexy F-14 that were recycled in a TV series called JAG caught my eye, and I soon became curious. One thing led to another, and soon I was researching every airplane I liked. Then, as a member of yearbook staff in 7th and 8th grade, I discovered photography. About that time (2003) I attended my first air show and concentrated on photographing every aircraft I could find. Taking pictures of an airplane certainly wasn’t the same as getting to fly one. With all of two small aircraft rides under my belt, I knew I wanted to try out this whole flying business.

However, the funds simply did not exist; I decided to spend money on camera gear instead, giving me something I could justify as an investment and eventually profit from. Still, in a roundabout way, photography led me to flying. Through photography I got to know EAA photographers Jim (Koepnick) and Bonnie (Kratz), whom I still work with today. Through them I learned about EAA’s Air Academy Camp and the Coffy Gregory Women in Aviation weekend, plus I got to take pictures that were later used in an EAA slideshow.

EAA education programs light the spark
That experience got my name in the EAA Education Department’s computer, and when they hosted the Spread Your Wings Camp in August 2006, 17 others and I received a scholarship to attend. The first event was a five-day overnight camp at the Air Academy Lodge on Pioneer Airport, right next to EAA headquarters. We flew the RV-6, played on flight simulators, built wing ribs, and started ground school lessons through EAA’s online AeroScholars course. It was a great experience and I met a lot of people with similar interests.

The program did not conclude after that first camp. Spread Your Wings includes two other weekend camps, so in October 2006, I attended the Ford Tri-Motor Fantasy Camp. In May 2007, four of us returned for a camp on Pioneer Airport’s opening weekend, where we launched rockets, played ultimate Frisbee on the Pioneer runway, and made late-night Taco Bell runs. I don’t understand why so few returned to take advantage of the splendid opportunities available to them. The road to success isn’t always the shortest, most direct path, but it’s vital to take every opportunity that life presents you.

What everyone else was missing was the opportunity to earn a $2,750 scholarship to begin flight training. They also missed a ton of memories, a lot of laughs, and some wonderful friendships. Those of us who took advantage were rewarded with these scholarships in August of 2007. My friend, Dario, soloed the same day that I took my first lesson in the Cub, and Devin is waiting eagerly to schedule his next lesson once school slows down.

On to flight training
Oh, right, the Cub—I should tell you about that! I was able to get my scholarship transferred to Cub Air Flight, LLC, run by CFI Steve Krog. I’ve been flying like a madman since April 20. In less than four weeks I’ve logged over 20 hours in Steve’s yellow Cub.

Remember what I said about taking every opportunity you can? While photo roaming at AirVenture last year, I met the owner of an airplane called the Polen Special. Dick Keyt, a retired Air Force pilot, American Airlines 777 captain, and an aeronautical engineer, invited me to be the Polen Foundation intern this summer in Granbury, Texas. I’ll be living on an airpark and working on the Polen trying to redesign parts that could use improvement for safety and speed, and then actually producing those parts. It’s going to be another challenge, but I’m excited to see what we can do!

Dick has plenty of aviation-oriented neighbors . . . including one who will donate the use of his Skyhawk to me for the price of fuel, and two instructors willing to donate their time. You’ll find that almost everyone in aviation is just itching to share it with someone, but you have to take the first step.

Back to the Cub…the lessons are going well, and the Cub is a ton of fun to fly. The only way to make it simpler is to take out the instrument panel. I try to fly at least three times a week, and it hasn’t gotten old, not even after three straight lessons of me trying to figure out when to flare. (I still claim that my method of landing is more economical—I get four landings for the price of one!) It’s certainly a challenge, but it is immensely enjoyable and very rewarding.

Lessons learned
The best advice I can give anyone contemplating flight lessons is to become involved. Meet the people at your local airport (I’ve found the relaxed atmosphere at smaller fields is often friendlier.) You never know who you’ll meet, or where things will lead.

Mostly, don’t be afraid to believe that your dream of learning to fly is within your reach. I concentrated so much on finances that I never realized just how attainable - with some dedication on my part – flight training is. I made excuses for not getting a job - too much homework, not enough time, no driver’s license - whereas if I had simply believed that I could do it, I would have found a way. It took the generosity of the two donors who funded my scholarship to encourage me to get a job and learn to balance my hectic schedules. It’s indisputably a challenge, but it has been the most rewarding and educational experience of my life, and I hope to someday share it with you (if I can figure out that whole landing bit!).

Editor’s Note: Amy is a very ambitious, energetic, and intelligent 17-year-old who will be graduating from high school in early June. She mastered the Cub and was able to make her first solo flight in 10.4 hours. Currently she is working on the cross-country flight phase of her training along with taking and passing the FAA written test. If the weather cooperates, we hope to have her ready for her checkride before leaving for Texas in mid-June.

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