I know it’s been quiet here—for my part, it’s due to just getting back into the swing of things post knee-injury, plus busy times at work and with life. I got to fly only once in October—my first solo flight since the summer and I spent it working on brushing up—some slow flight, practice stalls, steep turns, landings, etc. November was a bit better with some solo time, including working on night currency practice.
We chat here on the blog a lot about the joys of flying and the thrill we get from sharing aviation with folks. We tell our loved ones that we don’t honestly expect that everyone will love flying the same way we do (but deep down, we really DO believe that anyone introduced to a taste of aviation will have an immediate, all-consuming, undying passion for it.)
So in honor of giving thanks for the blessings I’ve enjoyed in life that allow me to fly, I was really excited Thanksgiving weekend, with the absolutely gorgeous weather we enjoyed in the northeast, to take some longtime friends for rides. I’ve known Lisa some 25+ years and shared a lot of laughs (and some tears) with her and her family over the years—getting to see her marry Pat and raise their two great kids, Christopher and Kaley.
Michiko and I flew in to Meriden Markham (KMMK), a 10 minute hop from Bridgeport, on a smooth-as-silk sunny morning. Since the wind was calm, we joined the downwind for Runway 18 and I had such a gentle touchdown that Michiko congratulated me. (I think it was actually a compliment, rather than a commentary about my other landings!). Lisa, Pat, the kids and Lisa’s mother Gail were already waiting for us outside the closed FBO, waving as we taxiied in.
After hugs all around, I walked the kids around the airplane in an abbreviated pre-flight. They had great questions and surprised me with things like knowing what would happen when the aileron was turned—what would happen to the wing and why….pretty impressive!
For the first sortie, we buckled Kaley and Gail in the back seat and I showed them seat belts and the headsets. Then Pat took the front seat and we got settled in. I briefed the flight for everyone, and then had Pat run through the start-up checklist for me as we fired up the engine.
Within a few minutes we were easily lifting into the air and climbing straight out to 1,100 feet before turning east (noise abatement procedure for KMMK). We flew over the top of Wallingford’s town center and headed east towards Middletown. I pointed out the Hartford city skyline to the north and Long Island Sound to the south. At the Connecticut River, I turned south and we followed the river down, overflying the Goodspeed Opera House (where Lisa used to work), Goodspeed Airport, Gillette Castle, Deep River’s marinas and the lighthouses at the mouth of the river. Then we followed the shoreline of Long Island Sound eastwards to Hammonassett.
Gail enjoyed the views of the nice houses along the shoreline on our starboard side, while Kaley pointed out boats speeding along the Sound and lighthouses. Then we headed back north towards Meriden. I tried to slow up a little as we approached the airport so that they could watch for familiar landmarks in Wallingford, but the airport is so close to town and we were approaching from the departure end of the runway, I didn’t want to linger too long in case other planes were entering the pattern or taking off.
As I talked through all the noises of power reduction, gear coming down, flaps coming down, etc., we entered the downwind leg for landing on Runway 18 again. As we turned onto the base leg, Kaley (as I’d asked everyone to do) called out two big white swans taking off from the lake off the approach end of the runway. They were well below us but I thanked her for spotting them for me.
A greaser of a landing and we were quickly parked. My passengers were thrilled with the ride, with Gail commenting on my terrific narrative of landmarks throughout the flight. Kaley was glowing too, saying she wants to be a pilot!
For the next sortie, Lisa and Michiko took the back seat and Christopher buckled in to the front seat. I briefed the flight again and had Christopher read the checklist for me as we started up. Again we launched into smooth air and I ended up repeating almost the same route (boring, I know, but it offers a bunch of interesting easily-spotted landmarks along the way). This time though (sorry Pat), I gave Christopher the controls for a good chunk of the flight, coaxing him through keeping us straight and level and a couple of gentle turns. He did a great job and was gentle on the controls—most first timers really yank the yoke around and upset the rear seat passengers! He was also an eagle eye, pointing out an airplane crossing in front of us, 1,000 feet above.
I tried to slow down again as we came in over Wallingford and Lisa was pointing out Christopher’s school and church to him as joined an extended downwind leg for Runway 18. I flew a long downwind so that Christopher could get a better view of the castle on the mountain north of the airport, and then did a long final approach. We ended up a little high, so I dumped in the third notch of flaps and we ended with a smooth landing and rollout.
Everyone (self included) had a great time flying and we enjoyed a great pizza lunch afterwards, relishing being able to kick back and visit with friends for a couple of hours before our short hop back to Bridgeport.
Hopefully we’ll all get to fly again soon!
