AOPA Project Pilot: Close to Home

Family members don't always make the most patient teachers. (Flash back, for instance, to the day that your dad tried to show you how to drive a stick-shift car.) But, as it turns out, dads and moms, siblings and cousins, and husbands and wives can make terrific mentors--particularly in the area of aviation.

Karen Seery celebrates her solo with flight instructors Brad Lawson, left, and Joe Smith. Smith broke his ankles in a fall while fixing a windsock, just before Seery was ready to solo.

Seery and Smith depart Red Stewart Airfield in Waynesville, Ohio.

Seery's husband, Loren, is her AOPA Project Pilot mentor.

Chad Speer is learning to fly a Piper Super Cub in Alaska.

Rob Speer, an experienced bush pilot, is son Chad's mentor.

Oversized tires allow the Super Cub to land on gravel bars and other rugged terrain.

Karen Seery fuels an Aeronca Champ at Red Stewart Airfield. She recently passed her sport pilot knowledge test.

Chad Speer hopes to solo on his sixteenth birthday in May. He has logged several hours on skis and floats.

Here's where their enthusiasm and sheer love of flying get to shine. Pilots tend to draw those around them into flying, and especially when these people are family members, they do whatever it takes to nurture that spark of interest in aviation. They provide a pat on the back, a sympathetic ear, and the wisdom that helps a new pilot understand the mysteries of operating a complex piece of equipment in three dimensions. And aviation is all the better for their efforts, and for the people they bring into the fold.

Meet two of these folks and the student pilots they're shepherding with the help of AOPA's Project Pilot, a unique program that provides mentors and student pilots with resources to help them achieve their aviation goals.

Growing up in aviation

Rob Speer is "the guy everyone calls when they get interested in flying," says his wife, Pamela Speer. Given that the Speers live in Alaska--a state in which general aviation plays a critical transportation role--Rob has his work cut out for him. And he's risen to the challenge: "This year alone he has mentored three very good friends and coworkers," Pamela says.

But it wasn't until recently that Rob and Pamela discovered AOPA Project Pilot. Rob enrolled a special student pilot to "test" the program--his 15-year-old son, Chad. They're excited about the benefits AOPA Project Pilot provides, Pamela says. Chad can utilize training CDs and receives a free six-month subscription to AOPA Flight Training. Rob also uses the Project Pilot materials as teaching tools for his volunteer work with the Civil Air Patrol's Mat-Su Minutemen Squadron in Wasilla, where the Speers live part of the year.

"I became interested in becoming a pilot a long time ago," says Chad, who flew with his mom from Oregon to Alaska when he was just four days old. Small airplanes have been a part of his life ever since. His father is a bush pilot for a hunting lodge in Iliamna, about 225 miles southwest of Anchorage. The family divides its time between Iliamna and Wasilla, in the south central part of the state.

Chad is learning to fly in his father's Piper PA-18 Super Cub, a tailwheel airplane similar to a Piper J-3 Cub, except that it has a larger engine, longer range, and more payload, making it an airplane of choice for bush flying. And even though he had logged just 33 hours when this article was written, he probably has more experience on floats and skis than many certificated pilots. That's part of living and flying in Alaska, where pilots are as likely to fly out of a private airstrip as a public airport, and land as often on cinder beds, beaches, or dry lake beds as on paved runways. During the summer, Chad and instructor John Furnia operate out of Iliamna Airport. Chad plans to solo on his sixteenth birthday, May 4.

Learning to fly in Alaska presents a set of challenges. There's the rugged terrain, the extreme climate in certain areas, and the lack of weather-reporting sources. Luckily for Chad, his dad has been flying in this environment since 1983. An instrument-rated commercial pilot, Rob Speer flies to remote places taking clients to fishing spots or dropping off hunters, where he might land the Super Cub on a ridge or a gravel bar. "Most of what we do is off-airport," he says.

"Having my dad as a mentor definitely adds a layer of comfort because I can count on him to know what he's doing," Chad says. "My dad has provided me with some excellent tips and instructions on how to deal with different scenarios," and has shared his expertise on maneuvers, landings, and takeoffs, he says. "In Alaska, you have to know what to do, especially in the bush, which is where we typically are practicing takeoffs and landings."

The conditions might be starkly different for a student pilot in parts of Alaska, but some challenges are the same for Chad as for student pilots everywhere else. "The hardest part so far seems to be landing," he says. "I don't think I'm alone in saying this either. Landing has to be one of the toughest things to do in an airplane, especially depending on the conditions. If you have a serious crosswind, for instance, that makes it extremely difficult."

Coexisting in the cockpit

A pilot in the family doesn't guarantee that you'll want to learn to fly from the beginning. Karen Seery grew up with pilots--her father is one--but "I was never interested," she says.

What eventually drew her to the cockpit? Her husband's enthusiasm for flying. Loren Seery has been a private pilot since 1999. "He raved about how exciting and refreshing it was to fly on a grass strip in a [Piper] Cub with the doors down! 'This is real flying!'" Karen recalls. "Although I hadn't been particularly interested before, he knew I'd really enjoy this. His excitement was infectious."

Key to introducing his wife to flying was that her husband did not push her into it, Karen says. "He was wise not to push me into it, and not to make me feel like I had to love it just because he did," she says.

Karen began taking flight lessons in an Aeronca Champ, flying at Red Stewart Airfield in Waynesville, Ohio, working with CFIs Brad Lawson and Joe Smith. She soloed on June 10, 2007, and at this writing had 25.9 hours. A move from Ohio to Minnesota just 11 days after her solo has disrupted her training, but she intends to press on and get a sport pilot certificate.

"It's fun to share one of my favorite hobbies with my wife, as well as have her gain personal insight, understanding, and experience in aviation," Loren says. "It was great to see her grin with excitement after an especially good lesson, or hear her describe some of the unique bird's-eye views of her flight. The sense of freedom, the technical challenge, and beautiful views are a large part of what I love about flying. Seeing my wife experience that for herself was exciting."

On a practical note, he adds, "She is now better equipped to help me make wise flying decisions in the future."

Karen has nothing but praise for her husband's mentoring: "He came to almost all of my lessons, despite his busy work schedule, and was willing to sit on the ground and watch me fly--a great sacrifice from a man who looks longingly at the sky on beautiful sunny days." Loren took "countless" pictures of Karen and the airplanes. She felt free to tell him when she was frustrated, or excited, or "scared to death." "He was understanding and supportive, always listening, letting me explain myself, and letting me make my own decisions," she says.

Mentors in the family

Rob Speer and Loren Seery attribute some of their success in aviation to mentors of their own. In Speer's case, it was a former employer.

Born in Oregon, Speer headed to Alaska just after graduating from high school, where he found a job at a sport fishing lodge. "When I first came up here, I didn't know anything about small airplanes, never rode in one," he recalls. When he started flying with his employer or his coworkers, he was always trying to see what the pilot was doing, he says. Eventually, that employer offered to pay for his primary training if he would stay on at the lodge for three years.

Loren Seery had a mentor closer to home--his father, a pilot and an airframe and powerplant mechanic. "He found me a great instructor, encouraged me, and helped me with questions I had. He did the maintenance for a friend with a Cessna 172, and in return my dad and I were allowed to use the airplane when the owner wasn't [flying it]. I was able to do my instrument rating in this plane, and only paid for the instructor and the fuel, thanks to my dad," he says.

Mentors play a huge role in student success. Research has shown that students with mentors are three times more likely to successfully complete their training. That's why AOPA, through Project Pilot, wants to help develop and encourage future pilots through person-to-person motivation and support.

Is there a mentor for you?

If, after reading these pages, you find yourself thinking, That's fine for them, but nobody in my family can mentor me--don't close the magazine yet. AOPA Project Pilot was designed to bring together student pilots and people who love to fly. When you visit the Web site, you'll see that it is divided into two sections: one for mentors, and one for students. If you don't have a mentor, click on "Find a Mentor" to see a searchable list of pilots. These are AOPA members who once were student pilots just like you. They remember what it was like and are ready to help you. All you need to do is give them a call, or send them an e-mail. Or, you can add your name to a list of students seeking mentors.

What if you've completed your private pilot training and are looking to pass along the joy of flight to others? We've got a student for you! In the Mentor section on the home page, you can add your name to the list of mentors, or search a list of students looking for someone like you. You don't have to be geographically close to that student--telephone or e-mail contact works too. If you have a friend who's interested in learning to fly but hasn't begun taking lessons, you can sign up that person for AOPA Project Pilot and help him to earn his wings.

Jill W. Tallman is associate editor of AOPA Flight Training and AOPA Pilot magazines. An instrument-rated private pilot, she has approximately 500 hours.

Want to know more?
Links to additional resources about the topics discussed in this article are available at AOPA Flight Training Online.