I clearly remember my first flight trip from Madras (MAA) to Chicago (ORD) with stop overs in Bombay (BOM) and New York (JFK) back in 1993. On the MAA - BOM segment, there was a gentleman from Australia sitting next to me. Having learned that it was my first flight, he made sure air hostess got me what I wanted. I was so excited and pretty much glued to the window whenever I could see outside!
I got to make another trip to Chicago in 1993 followed by an assignment in Honolulu, Hawaii the very next year. This time, my wife and I with our 9 month old daughter headed eastward from MAA to Honolulu (HNL) via Delhi (DEL) and Tokyo (NRT). We completed a trip around the world when we moved to Richmond (RIC) in 1995 followed by a visit to India in 1996. I guess you could say, Around the world in 21 months!
I am fascinated with flying and airplanes since then. We attended a Fly-in at the Petersburg airport (PTB) and started my first ground school in 1999 through the County of Henrico Adult Education program. Those days, the county used to have a flying program for students at the Highland Springs High School. The same instructor taught us the ground school. Around that time, I took a 30 minute demo flight in a Cessna-152 at the Hanover airport (OFP). I was glad there was a sick bag on the plane! :-(. With this experience and with all the restrictions ensued for non-citizens following 9/11, I put my interest on hold. Attended ground school for the second time in late 2007 at the Chesterfield airport (FCI), cleared the written exam with 97% and got the second class medical cum student pilot certificate right before I turned 40.
If I go to a local FBO on the week ends, it will take around 6 months to complete the minimum 40 hour flight training to become a Private pilot. There is a flight school in Florida offering 2-week accelerated Private Pilot training. With the written expiry date fast approaching, I have decided to give this a shot. I know it is not going to be easy with so much to learn in such a short span. Saying it will be like drinking through a Fire hose would be an under statement. So, I need all the encouragement I can get.
I got to make another trip to Chicago in 1993 followed by an assignment in Honolulu, Hawaii the very next year. This time, my wife and I with our 9 month old daughter headed eastward from MAA to Honolulu (HNL) via Delhi (DEL) and Tokyo (NRT). We completed a trip around the world when we moved to Richmond (RIC) in 1995 followed by a visit to India in 1996. I guess you could say, Around the world in 21 months!
I am fascinated with flying and airplanes since then. We attended a Fly-in at the Petersburg airport (PTB) and started my first ground school in 1999 through the County of Henrico Adult Education program. Those days, the county used to have a flying program for students at the Highland Springs High School. The same instructor taught us the ground school. Around that time, I took a 30 minute demo flight in a Cessna-152 at the Hanover airport (OFP). I was glad there was a sick bag on the plane! :-(. With this experience and with all the restrictions ensued for non-citizens following 9/11, I put my interest on hold. Attended ground school for the second time in late 2007 at the Chesterfield airport (FCI), cleared the written exam with 97% and got the second class medical cum student pilot certificate right before I turned 40.
If I go to a local FBO on the week ends, it will take around 6 months to complete the minimum 40 hour flight training to become a Private pilot. There is a flight school in Florida offering 2-week accelerated Private Pilot training. With the written expiry date fast approaching, I have decided to give this a shot. I know it is not going to be easy with so much to learn in such a short span. Saying it will be like drinking through a Fire hose would be an under statement. So, I need all the encouragement I can get.
