The Liberty Gazette
March 18, 2014
Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely
Mike: Whether your type is
stick-‘n-rudder, cyclic and collective, kerosene burner, quiet glider, full of
hot air, or a ground-bound lover of aviation, this is your little corner of the
paper for aviation stories from everywhere.
Did
you know the average age range of today’s student pilot is in their 30’s? The
average actively flying private pilot is in his or her 40’s, and many over 50
are now fulfilling their lifelong ambition to fly.
What
draws us to aviation? Well, the view for one thing. Experiencing the dimension
of altitude means your world is no longer flat, and we humans are attracted to
fullness. The next time you’re in a store, notice how the displays fill the
entire store. Retailers know this is appealing to consumers, and that “flat is
bad.” Flying gives us an experience of fullness in a whole new way, a
perspective on the world denied when gravity isn’t defied.
Linda: And how about challenge
and accomplishment – the hunt and the capture. No matter how long ago it may
have been, aviators remember clearly their first solo flight, from the moment the
instructor stepped out of the airplane and cleared the way for the student to say,
“I made that airplane fly – me, the boss, the pilot in command.” And yet we
knew there was so much more to learn.
Mike: There will always be
someone who has flown more or bigger aircraft, or has flown higher, faster,
longer, yet stories from novice pilots are just as exciting, and that’s the fun
we have here in these air lines; the people, the adventures… oh the places we
can go.
Linda: Speaking of airports, I was amused by a Facebook post made by the
amazingly talented composer, Eric Whitacre a couple of weeks ago.
This
Classical composer with the rock star image made the following public
admission: “Yesterday in the airport gift shop I hear this very familiar oboe
solo wafting over the store sound system. I listen more closely and can't
believe it: they are playing my 'Equus' for orchestra! I am so excited, take my
magazines to the counter and ask the woman, ‘do they play this piece often? I
wrote this music!’ She smiles at me strangely, and as I open my bag to take out
my wallet I realize that the music is blasting from my iPhone; I must have
accidentally started it at airport security. I blush like an idiot and get out
of there as fast as possible.”
It’s
nice to see the real and human side of someone who spends his life in the
spotlight. He could so easily become what turns us off most about people in the
public eye, yet he comes across as a likeable guy with a sense of humor. I’m
thinking he needs his own jet…and a couple of pilots. Nothing against my
airline friends, but this guy probably travels enough to justify a company
plane.
And so, aviation nuts, propeller heads, jetti-sons, rotor rats, glider guys and
gals, hope your next weekend includes some measure of aerial awesomeness. You
can always go out to the Liberty airport and say hello to Jose and Debbie while
you watch for airplanes. They’re great folks!
Give me a mile of highway
and I can travel a mile;
give me a mile of runway
and I can go anywhere.
www.ElyAirLines.blogspot.com
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