Learning to fly a small airplane was like an improbable dream come true for me. Over the last several months, some of my happiest moments have been at the controls of a single-engine Piper Cherokee as a rookie student pilot. Every takeoff sees my heart soar higher than the plane I’m flying and my soul delights at the sights and ambience that I’m privy to in the cockpit of my aircraft.
Along with the flying, there’s a lot of hard-nosed studying needed to be done to become a pilot. Ground school lessons have me going through aerodynamics, engine systems, instruments, weather and regulations, as my son and I prepare for various written exams and checkrides. In the course of going through the private pilot syllabus, I came across the regulations dictating the right-of-way for various airborne vehicles, and was struck by how easily they work — not just in the air, but to resolve any situation if properly followed.
Let me state some of the rules:
A balloon has right of way over a glider…
…and glider, in turn has right of way over an airship…
…and an airship has right of way over a rotorcraft, and so on.
Get the drift?
If you are in a position of advantage, you have the responsibility of ensuring that those without that advantage are safe, and have smooth passage through the skies. How cool and logical is that? Imagine what a welcome change this attitude could bring to all of our lives!
Learning to fly a little airplane is teaching me a lot — about aviation and also about life. The responsibility to be kind whenever you are privileged is just one of the lessons I’ve learned so far.