Let's Go Flying August Newsletter

In This Issue:
A lifelong dream of flying becomes a reality
Following adventure
Perfect match
Save some green
Getting the gear you need

Live the Dream

Greatest rewards of flying
One of the greatest rewards of learning to fly is the view outside. Fly along with brothers Colin and Paul Irvin on a 2006 cross-country adventure from California to Wisconsin to get a glimpse of the beauty of the West from above. "The scenery was stunning and at times downright frightening," writes Colin. "It's what we all live for." The brothers share a bird's-eye view of South Lake Tahoe, Great Salt Lake Desert, Badlands, Black Hills, Devils Tower, Mount Shasta, and more. Watch the slide show >>

A lifelong dream of flying becomes a reality
As a child, Jeff Berney was fascinated with airplanes and dreamed of becoming a pilot. Then, he grew up, and his priorities changed. "Learning to fly became just another of so many childhood dreams that aren't meant to follow us into adulthood," Berney writes. "Until now. The flying bug got me again. Now I'm 33 years old and married with two kids. I'm an advertising writer, and in the course of doing some research for a potential client in the aviation industry, it happened. I just felt the need to learn to fly (the need for speed, as my younger self would have put it)." Read more >>

Following adventure
After a long day in the office, what could be more relaxing than combining three of your passions? For Mike Kincaid, it was fishing with his 8-year-old son. He used his Cub on floats to fly to remote Alaskan lakes filled with king salmon, pike, arctic grayling, and steelhead. Floatplanes, it turns out, can make the perfect perch for an evening of fishing. Read more >>

Gone flying? Tell us about your flight and submit photos and video of the experience!

Start Flying

Perfect match
Finding a good flight instructor has to be one of the more important tasks for the new student pilot. Given that you need to be comfortable with and have confidence in your certificated flight instructor, it's worth spending some time to find the right match. What's important as you begin your search? What should you look for? Whom should you avoid? Does it really make that much difference? Read more >>

Save some green
In a perfect world, money for flight training would grow on trees and obtaining your pilot certificate would be only a matter of time, not cash. But training to become a certificated pilot is an expense that forces most of us to prioritize the greenbacks over other considerations, unfortunate as it may be. But imagine for a minute a flight school that gave students 20 percent back for every hour of ground or flight instruction that they purchased. Sweetheart deals like this are possible. With some hard work, discipline, and time management, it is possible to save significant sums (read thousands) on learning how to fly. Read more >>

Getting the gear you need
The truth is that you really don't need the latests gadgets to learn how to fly or to practice the aviator's craft. Keep it simple—the simpler the better. To help you figure out what tools you need and where you can buy them, we've compiled a student pilot's shopping list and a host of aviation retailers and manufacturers. Read more >>

First Steps • Types of Certificates • Time and Cost
Choose a Flight Instructor • Safety • Take Your First Flight

Aircraft of the Month

Robinson R22 Beta II
The Robinson R22 Beta II is one of the most popular entry-level helicopters in the world, with more than 3,600 delivered to more than 60 countries. Large front and side windows provide unobstructed, panoramic views. Unlike an airplane, helicopters can hover in one place over the ground and even fly backward! In flight, the Beta II feels light and crisp. In fact, the Beta II has become known for its responsive control characteristics, requiring pilots to perform to higher standards from the beginning. The sharper skills required by the Beta II make future transitions to high-performance turbine helicopters easier.

Ask a Pilot

Question: What happens when an airplane stalls?

Answer: An airplane's stall is completely different than a car's stall. A stall in the airplane has absolutely nothing to do with the engine. A stall occurs when the smooth airflow over the airplane's wing is disrupted. This can happen when the nose of the aircraft is pointed too high. To correct, pilots simply lower the nose of the airplane and go back to straight-and-level flight. So no worries, the engine doesn't stop, and the airplane doesn't fall out of the sky!

Do you have a question about flying? Ask a pilot! Call 877-58-PILOT, or send an e-mail.

Learn the Lingo

As with any passion, there’s a special “insider’s language.” We’ve pulled together some key terms to get you in the loop.

Crosswind: Hang around pilots long enough, and you'll inevitably hear them talk about crosswinds. Any time the wind isn't blowing directly down the runway, it is referred to as a crosswind. Pilots often practice crosswind landing techniques, something you'll learn in your training, and pride themselves upon its mastery.

Thermals: Those bumps you feel from time to time on an airliner are actually a glider pilot's best friends. From the air, the ground looks like a patchwork quilt. As the sun rises, it heats the earth unevenly—parking lots before forests. It creates rising columns of air, capped off by puffy cumulus clouds. Glider pilots spiral up in the thermals and can hopscotch for hundreds of miles, at least as long as the sun shines.

Elevator: An elevator is a movable surface on the tail of an airplane. It is connected to the yoke (steering wheel) in the cockpit. Pull back on the yoke, and the elevator will make the airplane climb. Push forward, and the elevator will make the airplane descend.

Have you heard or seen a term at the airport that you didn’t understand? Send us the word, and we can explain it to you—it might even appear in a future Let’s Go Flying eNewsletter!

Airport Days

Experience the camaraderie among pilots, listen to exciting flying stories, and go up for a flight at an airport near you! Airports all across the United States offer different weekend activities, from pancake breakfasts and barbecues to car and airshows. Find out what’s going on in your area! You can search by city, state, or geographic region.

• Destinations and Events

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