[LFL Steve]

Every kid knows that airplanes are cool. Really cool. My father was an aviator. Airline pilot, flight instructor, GA enthusiast. As a kid I was totally into airplanes and all things aviation and I was very knowledgeable. When I was old enough for flight lessons I had access to an airplane and an excellent instructor, free, but the deal was that I had to come up with the money for fuel. So the whole program was $6/hr “wet” (early’70s). But it just wasn’t me. I ended up spending the money on photography equipment. I’m still a little bit of an aviation buff.

My son also knew that airplanes are really cool. He grew up as a hangar rat in Granddad’s hangar. He loved those days, he loved Granddad, and hanging out with other pilots, and he couldn’t wait to fly! He had an even better opportunity: When he was old enough he would have the whole flight program at no cost. But he was 9 when Granddad died. When he was a teenager we got him flight lessons. He soloed at 14. He took his first FAA check ride wearing Granddad’s heavy leather flight jacket, in July. Today he is an aerospace engineer and test pilot, and he is completing construction of the kit airplane Granddad had started.

When he takes me flying I keep my hands off the stick.