‘Demystiflying’
Making sense of the dizzying new world of flying
How long will it take? What can I do as a pilot? Where should I learn to fly? What’s that airplane on the ramp? What will my first flight be like? How can I make the most of my training? How do I pay for this? Do I need perfect vision? At Flight Training, we tackle these questions issue by issue, article by article. In Demystiflying: How to Become a Pilot for Those Who Don’t Speak Pilot, author Kine A. Paulsen wraps these topics up in just under 200 pages of insights from pilots across the spectrum of recreational, professional, and military aviation.
Paulsen—a student pilot, corporate adviser, and investor—interviewed more than 200 pilots for the book, which aims to distill the complicated journey of learning to fly into a simple, understandable guide. Paulsen proceeds methodically through all the major considerations in becoming a pilot, from why you should do it to the challenges you’ll face, different ways to earn your certificate, finding the right instructor, what to expect from the training process, how to connect with other pilots, options for owning or accessing aircraft, and even aviation history and aircraft recognition. Pervasive throughout are the anecdotes and words of wisdom from aviators, including such high-profile pilots such as iHeartRadio founder and former MTV CEO Bob Pittman, journalist Miles O’Brien, and longtime Flight Training columnist and flight instructor hall of fame inductee Greg Brown.
Learning to fly is a massive undertaking, and no book can spare students from the waves of information overload they’re bound to encounter along the way. But Demystiflying outlines the process in simple terms, arming students with a big-picture view of what to expect and advice from pilots who have been through it all already. And perhaps the greatest insight Paulsen offers is in her methodology: As a student pilot herself, she sought answers from the community of aviators. In passing their wisdom to others, she reminds us the best way to learn and grow in aviation is to surround ourselves with fellow pilots.
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