Why We Fly

Aerobatic pilot explores her limits

By nature, Diana Richards considers herself an "overly cautious woman." So why did she want to enter her first aerobatic contest in Kansas City, Missouri, in September 2007? Her simple answer was, "Because I can."

"Once in a while I am able to wrestle the controls of life from this fearful woman and let that adventurous woman take charge, at least for a while," said Richards. "When I am able to do this, I usually find the rewards worthwhile."

In her barely aerobatic Citabria, a 150-horsepower 7GCAA without fuel and oil systems that allow sustained inverted flight, Richards flew in the primary category for beginners among five Pitts Specials, one Decathlon, one EAA Biplane, and a Cassutt Racer.

"I didn't score as well as I had hoped and didn't fly as well as I wanted," said Richards, who ended up in ninth place out of nine. "But who does? I didn't zero any maneuvers and stayed in the box," meaning she did not mess up any maneuvers and remained within a designated box of airspace while performing her routine. "I did better than I thought I would, but not as well as I hoped as far as scoring went."

Richards, 56, has been flying since the age of 13. After soloing on her sixteenth birthday, she ran out of money and eventually started taking lessons again with her husband and CFI, Tom, when she was in her mid 30s. Her father was her first passenger when she earned her private pilot certificate in the late 1980s. In 2006, Richards was thrilled to do a victory roll in her father's honor while scattering his ashes over the farm where she and her husband live in the southwest corner of Missouri.

"It's just one of those things you can do with an airplane," said Richards. She and her husband established an FAA-approved practice area over the farm to provide a safer aerobatic environment, where Richards practiced and prepared her own sequences.

"Aerobatic instructors aren't readily available in our area," said Richards, who has been fortunate during the past few years to get several lessons from some aerobatic teachers, although none involved sequencing maneuvers. "So I did some research, devouring aerobatic books, Sport Aerobatics articles, participating in aerobatic forums, and picking the brains of several aerobatic friends," she said. And she is satisfied with the results.

"I made the best of it with what I have," said Richards. "My goals going into the contest were to be safe, don't fly out the bottom of the box and get sent home, don't embarrass myself, make good landings in front of everyone, don't zero any maneuvers, and earn a decent score." She met most of her goals.

"No doubt the greatest benefit I took away from this total experience is that it made me a better and safer pilot. And really, isn't that what it's all about?"

So what's next? She might fly in another aerobatic contest. She enjoys taking people on first flights.

"What fun to take someone for their first anything in an airplane."

Her next challenge is to write a book about the adventures of her first grass strip tour experience. "I love to share the joy."

Kathryn Opalewski is a former editorial assistant for AOPA Flight Training magazine.