Member Benefits

Ian J. Twombly

Day job: Deputy Editor of Flight Training magazine

Certificates and Ratings: Commercial ASEL, AMEL, ASES, CFI, CFII

Flight hours: 1,000 hours total time

Dream vehicle: Do I have to choose just one? After an Aston Martin DB9, it would probably be my old BMW 2002. I had it in college, and the simplicity of the car was wonderful. I loved the big steering wheel, no power steering, and manual gearbox. But it still had that BMW signature feel and was such a pleasure to drive.

First car: A baby blue 1986 Olds Delta 88 with a white vinyl roof. Man, that car was a piece of junk.

Memorable experiences on wheels or wings: The thing about cars and airplanes is that you make memories in them. So I have many memorable drives and flights for many different reasons. I’ll never forget driving my son home from the hospital the first time, or taking road trips in college with my buddies. With flights, my first solo instrument approach ranks up there, as does taking friends and family for flights.

Farthest flight and drive: The farthest I’ve driven in one day is Gainesville, Fla., to Nashua, N.H. My farthest flight is Frederick, Md., to San Jose, Calif.

Favorite aircraft: My dream airplane to own is a Piper Cub. My dream flight is a P-51.

Weirdest road trip and/or flight: Funny thing, my weirdest flight and drive both involve my best friend in college. The drive was a road trip in the 2002 from Florida. We had stopped for gas at 2 a.m. and when we got back on the highway the headlights quit. I remember we pulled off the side of the road and taped the stalk to be on the brights, which worked. Sorry to everyone driving the other way on I-95 that night. The flight involves some airsickness, a package of orange FBO crackers, and the open door of a Cub. I’ll let your imagination fill in the blanks.

 

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