http://www.sunlitsilence.com

http://kck.st/8XIkih

This July, we plan to fly a small single engine (Piper Arrow) airplane from Chesapeake, VA around the continental United States. Packing a tent, fishing pole, and sleeping bags in the back, we hope to visit many of the nation's landmarks and camp outdoors at a majority of them. Being gone for approximately two and a half weeks, we hope to gain an understanding and true appreciation of the incredible sights, people, and experiences that this country has to offer. We'd like to share this experience and incredible perspective of the United States with all of you. Your contributions will aid in the airplane related costs including fuel, oil, and maintenance. In return, we will provide all of you with the best pictures, video, and written updates during our trip along with the rewards listed on our Kickstarter website.

Ryan and I are pilots. I suppose before that, we’re college students, training to be Air Force officers, young adults, but in our minds, first are foremost, we’re pilots. In keeping with that, we wanted to end our “childhood” with a bang. A year from now, Ryan will be a commissioned United States Air Force 2nd Lieutenant, and I will be spending his fifth year in college working towards an Aerospace Engineering Degree and also a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant. We won’t have an opportunity to do this again.

One of the biggest challenges to our proposed flight trip is the justification of the cost. Is this experience worth spending $5,000 each of our USAA Lieutenant loan (available to cadets within 18 months of commissioning)? Can we say that the benefits of this trip are worth the price? My Mom and Dad have always suggested creating a basic pros and cons list to aid in the decision making process.

Well, that’s the difficult part. Sure, Ryan and I will both gain between 50-60 hours of practical flight experience, but the overall motivating factors are those which we can’t measure. The sights we’ll see, the people we’ll meet, the experiences we’ll have, and the challenges we’ll have to overcome are what motivate Ryan and I to continue to spend virtually all of our income on aviation.