Flying Isn't Cool

[201er]

I participated in a pennies a pound event today and what shocked me is that there was a long line of volunteering airplanes and few participants. If anything, I would think that there would be a line of people interested in a below cost ride in a G36, Columbia, C210, or 201!? Nope! Pilots were sitting around waiting for participants to come around. 

I know people have their gizmos and what have you, but flying is real. I honestly can't understand why flying isn't cool?

[Hank]

Come to Alabama next June and you'll understand that flying isn't (always) cool. 

every public flying event that I've ever seen has been rather busy. Like everything else, attendance surges up and down during the event, from hour-long waits to nobody then back to busy.

those with little attendance always had little publicity, short notice, etc. the first event that I finally had 500 hours for, I gave eight rides to over a dozen people. We had six planes and eight pilots, busy all day long.

sorry for your slow day . . .

[helitim]

It just so happened that I flew into KCPU Saturdays week ago at about 0730 and was astounded at what I saw in the pattern and on the ground.  This is a sleepy little country airport up in the California gold country.  It was rare to ever have anther plane in the pattern on previous trips.  This particular morning had 3 other planes in the pattern with myself making four.  On short final there was another taxiing and I could see another plane near the FBO.  There was a huge group of people gathered around the FBO area.  After shutdown, I walked over to inquire what was going on.  One of the pilots said "This is our monthly Young Eagles flight day". Given a few minutes to look around it became quickly obvious that this EAA chapter had their act together and knew exactly how to run this event.  There were multiple safety personnel preventing anyone from inadvertently walking out onto the flight line unattended.  A picnic table was setup with a gentleman announcing who the next flight recipients were and getting them lined up to load.  There were no less than 75 children of various ages wandering around with a hundred or so adults.  Kids were playing and having fun.  Adults were visiting with each other or the kids.  It was so pleasantly refreshing to see this kind of activity at such a small airport could be so successful.

if you need any assistance in organizing a flight event similar to this, I would highly recommend you either contact this chapter or the EAA in Oshkosh for technical assistance in organizing, advertising and conducting the event.  

Tim

[steingar]

Whether or not folks show up to a flying event is dependent on publicity and nothing else period.

[N601RX]

At the SERFI yesterday I noticed that there were several Young Eagle planes who stayed busy and had a waiting line. The Biplane rides also kept a line most of the day.  

[peevee]

I work in aviation and it's like pulling teeth to get people that want to go fly, I don't even ask anymore.

[Hector]

Recently, a friend who is a teacher in high school mentioned that she had a kid in her class that was really into aviation and asked me if I could take him flying. She gave this kid my number and I took him up a week ago. Wow! The enthusiasm was incredible. He had never been up in an airplane but had logged at lot of hours in Microsoft simulator. Knew all the instruments and flew the Mooney pretty darn well. You could tell he was having the time of his life and could hardly contain his excitement. He is graduating this year and working his ass off saving money to go to Embry Riddle where he plans to work hard to become an air traffic controller. He wants to get his PPL and really prefers flying but he has cystic fibrosis and has realistic expectations about how far he can get as a pilot. Flying with this kid was refreshing to say the least. It has been a long time since I've found a young man that is as excited about all things aviation as I was/am. He and I will be flying a lot more together. I will enjoy having him around as much as he will enjoy the flying experiences. Over the last week I've been thinking that I need to get oxygen for my plane. I routinely fly my C between 7-10K without oxygen, but given his condition I think now would be a good time to make that purchase. There are still kids out there who love aviation. They may be getting harder to find but keep looking and you may just make a real difference in someone's life.

[TWinter]

You have to wonder if some of the lack of interest has to do with the media's roll in reporting of the news and the bad and dangerous spin they seem to put on almost every small plane crash.  Even though as pilots we all know the stats and how safe flying actually there is still the morbid sensationalism and hype the news media stir up when there is a GA accident. Many times when I'm in discussion with folks who are not very GA savvy they are quick to point out the how dangerous flying must be in a small airplane and they recite the most recent airplane accident they can remember. Look at us today here on the forum...we've already heard about a fatal Mooney crash as reported from the internet news, years ago we possibly may have never heard about the accident. With the news now we seem to hear about every mishap major or minor. This idea may have anything to do with it, but most of the news reporting sure does not help promote GA. 

[Guest]

You have to wonder if some of the lack of interest has to do with the media's roll in reporting of the news and the bad and dangerous spin they seem to put on almost every small plane crash.  Even though as pilots we all know the stats and how safe flying actually there is still the morbid sensationalism and hype the news media stir up when there is a GA accident. Many times when I'm in discussion with folks who are not very GA savvy they are quick to point out the how dangerous flying must be in a small airplane and they recite the most recent airplane accident they can remember. Look at us today here on the forum...we've already heard about a fatal Mooney crash as reported from the internet news, years ago we possibly may have never heard about the accident. With the news now we seem to hear about every mishap major or minor. This idea may have anything to do with it, but most of the news reporting sure does not help promote GA. 

If car crashes got the same level of media coverage and hype as something as simple as a gear up landing, we'd all be riding a horse or walking.

Clarence

Edited October 25, 2015 by M20Doc

[gsxrpilot]

In the spirit of -A-

Lots of people like airplanes, but few are as obsessed as we are... if they were, they'd own their own airplane.

People who aren't completely obsessed can't just drop everything to go take a ride in an airplane, even if it is cheap or free.

Good publicity makes all the difference.

The EAA with Young Eagles are the experts here.

I fly Young Eagles several times a year and always spend the entire day giving ride after ride after ride.

[N601RX]

I've offered several coworkers a free ride over the last several years and only had one say no after calling his wife and asking if he could go.  The others didn't ask.

[Hank]

I've even taken coworkers to ride who were afraid to fly. Waited for the right conditions. Sat in the plane inside the hangar, with the door closed.

As we were climbing out, I asked how she was and offered to be back on the ground in three minutes. With an ear to ear grin, she said, "No, I'm fine. This is wonderful!" Then we had a nice scenic ride. She did not want to hold the controls, but did so briefly for a photo. It may not have changed her life, but it sure cured her fear of flying.

[PTK]

A very close family friend teaches Physics at our local HS. She knows that I own and fly a Mooney and has been asking me to give a presentation for her class. This year it will finally happen because our twins happen to be in her Physics H class!

I'm looking forward to it and maybe giving some rides to some of their classmates. Who knows! Changing perceptions one child at a time!

Edited October 26, 2015 by PTK

[MyNameIsNobody]

I've offered several coworkers a free ride over the last several years and only had one say no after calling his wife and asking if he could go.  The others didn't ask.

Was he wearing a nice pants-suit?

[201er]

Video from the Pennies a Pound event:

[Marauder]

Video from the Pennies a Pound event:

[url=https://www.youtube.com/embed/PJ3kkAMr8_M?feature=oembed]

Nice video Mike!

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Danb]

Mike it appears that the next generation is content with there iPhones, tablets,Internet games rapping and selling there soul on social media than doing anything else. Go to a sports complex at a junior high,quite empty.quite sad. I get it no I don't get it.  Is it the parents fault ,peer pressure I have no clue or solution, I do know i brought out a group of home schoolers with a vast difference in the ages and was more than pleased, they all but one wanted to fly the little girl got scared and I talked the parent not to make her go that would be cruel the experience they had was a winner and the kids were overwhelmed with joy not as much as me though. Let's keep trying,it may be the only way to get future aviators interested even though it's at an early age..

Edited October 28, 2015 by Danb

[201er]

and the kids were overwhelmed with joy not as much as me though. Let's keep trying,it may be the only way to get future aviators interested even though it's at an early age..

what I don't understand is why the aviators have to try to get people interested. Correct me if I'm wrong, but before, common folks were themselves interested and had to line up trying to convince the aviator to take them and not the other way around. I don't see how ANY game or whathaveyou on an ipad could beat actually flying for real!

[Danb]

Yeah your kinda wrong, when we were young we didn't have all the electronic items to keep us busy we went out and played, kids nowadays don't, couch potatoes I guess. So by offering a experience at the airport and a subsequent flight, they did projects, were taught about principals of flight and were introduced to weather by there teacher. When I got the kids they were extremely excited to see the plane, airport etc, they did not know they were going for a flight until they got there. I had 16 little eyes light up and joyous for the occasion. Times have changed so my little arrangement to volunteer has been quite useful.  How about young eagles and ensuing flights or discovery  flights should we just say the h with that and not do our part in an effort to build an inspiration for flight?

 

Edited October 28, 2015 by Danb

[gsxrpilot]

I gotta disagree with the general trend on this thread.  I don't see any issues with today's kids being on electronic media, social media, video games, etc.  This is the future, and certainly the future of our economy. Even the US Air Force needs video game pilots more than actual "outside" pilots.  I make my living on the cutting edge of IT/Technology. I have many friends who are airplane owners and pilots because they were good at technology and now have the disposable income to enjoy this relatively expensive hobby.  A good friend of mine here in TX is a millionaire several times over. His Dad is a friend of mine as well, closer to my age. He talks about how he tried to keep his son away from the video games while he was growing up. Fortunately he wasn't successful. He now lives in his son's lake house.

Sports are actually the biggest waste of time as the percentage of kids who will ever make their living as an athlete is very small. There can be health benefits, but there are just as likely to be health problems from injury. (My son played professional hockey, I know).

Welcome to the 21st century folks.

Edited October 28, 2015 by gsxrpilot

[Danb]

Paul I definitely did not say kids on electronic media were wrong or misguided, I merely was stating how things have changed and due to these changes possibly we may have to do certain things to stimulate areas such as flying, there is merit in introducing our kids to visit some areas they may not generally may not have. I basically am keeping my comments to introduction to flight.

Edited October 28, 2015 by Danb

[DonMuncy]

I call it the "gee whiz" factor. When you are playing marbles in the dirt (as we did when I was  kid), if a any plane flew over, that was viewed as the ultimate in excitement. Today, if a kid is flying a fighter jet on a flight simulator and sees a Cessna putt putt past, do you think he is going to think how exciting that must be.

[MyNameIsNobody]

I gotta disagree with the general trend on this thread.  I don't see any issues with today's kids being on electronic media, social media, video games, etc.  This is the future, and certainly the future of our economy. Even the US Air Force needs video game pilots more than actual "outside" pilots.  I make my living on the cutting edge of IT/Technology. I have many friends who are airplane owners and pilots because they were good at technology and now have the disposable income to enjoy this relatively expensive hobby.  A good friend of mine here in TX is a millionaire several times over. His Dad is a friend of mine as well, closer to my age. He talks about how he tried to keep his son away from the video games while he was growing up. Fortunately he wasn't successful. He now lives in his son's lake house.

Sports are actually the biggest waste of time as the percentage of kids who will ever make their living as an athlete is very small. There can be health benefits, but there are just as likely to be health problems from injury. (My son played professional hockey, I know).

Welcome to the 21st century folks.

Paul, you had me on board UNTIL you had to throw in the B.S. Lib mantra on sports.  You were not a student athlete were you Paul.  To not enjoy participating in sports...or aviation is fine with me, but throwing out a blanket statement that "sports are actually the biggest waste of time" is an ignorant comment at least and a hateful uninformed one at best.  Competition, whether on the golf course, cross-country, Track, Tennis Court, Volleyball Court, Baseball/Softball Field, Math Competition, Show Choir or  gasp Soccer, Football and Hockey develop youth in positive ways that a software-jock hating geek apparently just "don't get".  It is NOT about making a living.  It is about developing yourself physically and mentally.  Improving from coaching and training.  Learning how to be a part of something bigger than you.  It is about the whole being better than the individual parts or as Patton once said: "Americans play to win all of the time...and you should have seen those trucks on the road to Tunisia.  Those drivers were magnificent.  All day and all night they rolled over those son-of-a-bitching roads, never stopping, never faltering from their course.  They did it, and in one hell of a way they did it.  They were part of a team.  Without a team effort, without them, the fight would have been lost.  All of the links in the chain pulled together and the chain became unbreakable."

%^$& your 21st century.  This progressive party B.S. don't hunt.

There, a contrary opinion to chew on and hate.  Everybody knows hockey is not a real sport anyway.

[Danb]

Regarding the team aspect, it doesn't need to be aimed at sports when in the Corps. we had similar to your Patton quote work as a team starting from the time the bus crossed the gate, first day at Parris  Island, we do need to work together so the group can act as one. I certainly didn't want this thread to go in this direction. I merely wanted a way to provide the youth the gift of flying...nothing else.

Edited October 29, 2015 by Danb

[Mooneymite]

Last three commercial flights, I noticed that virtually all the window shades were closed during daylight.  No one seems interested in looking out the window and the daylight interferes with the tablet screens.

The thrill of flight has certainly waned.

The really sad thing was my window shade was pulled down tight too.

Edited October 29, 2015 by Mooneymite