Monday, May 13, 2013

When You Can't Fly - Grounded

Being a student pilot and having the opportunity to fly nearly every weekend is an amazing thing. Before January, I flew on average about 15 flights (legs) a year, commercially. Now that I'm in training, I'm fortunate to fly frequently, which is amazing. Knowing that I am going flying over the weekend definitely gets me through the school week!
Another favorite flight video

Every now and then, things don't go as planned, and you're grounded for a few weeks at a time due to things out of your control. The fact that I've gotten used to flying frequently makes that even more difficult. 

 Flying has taught me a lot about patience; flying is really something that you can't push the boundaries on. It's all about safety! If the weather is bad, no go. That's something entirely out of my control, and it honestly takes some getting used to as a new pilot. The weather totally dictates what you do when flying.

 The last time I flew was 2 weeks ago. This weekend is mother's day weekend, family is in town, and the weather hasn't been great, so no flying. Next weekend, my instructor is going to be out of town, so I won't be flying then either. Overall, once this next weekend has passes, it will have been 3 or 4 weeks since I have last flown, something I'm not entirely happy about. I don't have a whole lot of time with my instructor before he moves in June, so I am trying to fit as much time in with him as I can. 
This is what you don't want to have happen

 My next lesson is scheduled to be a longer flight between Hanover (KOFP) and Norfolk or Newport News. I will practice flying in Class C airspace as well as communications with control towers. I'm so excited to fly into a larger airport, with larger runways, that services commercial airlines. In addition, soon I will be flying into RIC, which is the airport I've grown up flying out of. The day I land myself on those runways will be a huge deal for me personally! 
 Richmond International Airport (RIC), I will be flying here soon

Until then, it's going to be a long few weeks without flying! 

 Hopefully I'll be back up in the air soon,
Thanks for reading,

Swayne Martin
Twitter: @MartinsAviation
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5 comments:

  1. Karlene PetittMay 13, 2013 at 8:04 PM

    Keep your head in the books and do some arm chair flying! While it's not the real thing... you'll keep your skills up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownMay 13, 2013 at 10:40 PM

      Thanks! With school coming down to the wire, it's hard to do anything! Exams are in about 2 weeks, so teachers are cramming

      Hopefully I'll get time soon to do some armchair flying!
      Thanks for the comment,
      -Swayne

      Delete
  2. LindaMay 14, 2013 at 10:16 PM

    You have a fascinating blog. Great photos.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownMay 14, 2013 at 10:19 PM

    Thanks Linda! Stop back by tomorrow to see another awesome "Share Your Story" post from a C-130 Aviator.

    Appreciate the comment,
    -Swayne

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousMay 31, 2013 at 2:48 AM

    thats a really great, you inspires me! :)

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for your comment; I really appreciate it! Glad you are here with me on the blog. If your comment does not appear right away, it will after verification.

Many Thanks, Happy Flying,
Swayne Martin

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