Debrief: Michael Clinton

Aircraft… I rent a Cessna 172. It’s what I know, what I’m comfortable with. I love it—it’s a little workhorse.

Toughest lessons…I did a dolphin landing once. It hit the runway and ballooned up and down, up and down. I had passengers in the plane and I was supposed to do a go-around. It was like driving the plane to land. It could have been dangerous situation—it could have flipped over. The other thing: On my first cross-country a beacon started blaring in the cockpit. I got on the radio to New Haven tower and said, ‘Hey, I’m a student pilot and I have a strange noise in the cockpit.’ It was the ELT. He told me how to turn it off.

Life skills in aviation… Up about 3,000 feet once the passenger door flew open. The passenger was petrified. I had to take control of the situation.

Flying taught me to never have a knee-jerk reaction. Think, What do I do? That pause becomes a calm, and a sense of command. It’s taking a step back. If you panic you don’t have a sense of focus and you have a dangerous situation.

Flying pet peeves…In a lot of unrestricted airspace, it’s like driving offensively. In East Hampton it’s left traffic. Pilots will inevitably come in on the right. Just pay attention to other planes in the air, learn to be diligent, look out over the horizon.

Advice for students…Don’t rush. Don’t feel you have to get it in 40 hours. Don’t be in a hurry to go up to faster, bigger airplanes. Master what you know. Learn everything you need to be a smart, savvy pilot.

Second thing is, don’t take shortcuts. Sloppiness can lead to bad situations. Do preflight checks thoroughly. Don’t be a cowboy.

Ultimately you have to be comfortable in the rhythm of the airplane.