My Love for Flying

I fell in love with aviation at a very young age.  When I was 12, I got my first taste of what it feels like to take control of the yoke and fly through the skies.  I didn’t want to land; that feeling of freedom, seeing for miles and miles, all of the cars and homes so small.  It left a lasting impression.  I wanted to join the military after seeing “Top Gun,” but quickly learned that my corrected vision would prevent me from flying mach 1.  No matter, I learned of private instruction and began my formal training in the late 1990s.  I soloed in a Cessna 152 out of KYIP in 1997.  My parents were so proud (and nervous).  I still remember what it felt like to look over to my right and seeing an empty seat.  Personal and financial issues kept me out of the skies for the next ten years and in the year 2009, I began flying again.  I had my second “first solo” in late 2009.  And in April of 2010, I earned my Private Pilot certificate.  I never would have imagined holding that license in my hands.  I was overwhelmed with happiness.  I applied and was accepted into the Aviation Program at Eastern Michigan University that summer.  I began working on my Instrument rating and in early 2011, I passed my checkride.  Currently, I plan to share my love for aviation at the Eagle Flight Center this Fall as a newly certificated flight instructor.  I hope to work for the regional airlines within 1 to 2 years, specifically ExpressJet.  No longer would I claim that I have to go to work, but that I want to go to work.