Need a feel good story to pick you up, try this
one: http://forums.aopa.org/showthread.php?t=28695
(sorry if that requires a login).
Summary of it is a 20 year old college student/student
pilot had his bike stolen from in front of his house. He used the bike as his primary form of
transportation since he had sold his car to pay for flying lessons (yeah, we’re
usually that devoted to flying). He had
no way to get to the airport to take his flying lessons and was having trouble
getting to class and generally around campus.
The kid was pissed and just wanted to rant a little bit.
The end result is that the group of pilots on the
board each chipped in a little bit and gave him enough money to buy a new bike
(one guy even donated a backup bike for him).
The net result is that the kid continues to fly and tells everyone he
meets that the bike was paid for by pilots from around the country. Certainly there were some gripes and some people
were upset that he used the board to make a profit, but I don’t feel that was
his intent.
The lesson here is that pilots generally band
together. We’re kind of birds of a
feather, pun intended. I’ve been in
random places where cabs were an almost impossibility and fellow pilots asked
me if I needed a ride somewhere. Likewise,
I do the same when the shoe’s on the other foot.
Maybe we’re the last true “brotherhood” (ladies
included) in the US. Maybe it’s that
feeling of camaraderie that pilots really enjoy. I know that I enjoy a good chat over a hot
meal or cold drink after a long day of flying.
To be able to sit down and recap the day with fellow pilots makes it just
that much better.
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