I’ve been reading this magazine for two-thirds of my life, ever since I was an eager-eyed lad of 12. Back then, the arrival of Flying‘s newest issue was a highlight of my month. I’d read Len Morgan first, then Gordon Baxter, then Mac McClellan, Dick Collins and Peter Garrison, and then everything else. I had no clue about half the stuff I read, but at least it got me familiar with aviation lingo. I drooled over and plastered my bedroom with spreads of all sorts of airplanes: GA, corporate and transport, props and jets, vintage and new, and bleeding-edge prototypes. If it had wings, I loved it and couldn’t read enough about it. I still remember a lot of the covers, and some of my favorite stories — like the time Flying paired up with Car and Driver to race a Mooney MSE against a Ferrari 456GT across the wastes of West Texas. That one prompted a lot of angry mail from straight-laced law-and-order types, but I thought it was as cool as anything I’d ever read. Adolescence seemed so slow and dull, but by reading the words of the guys who got to do and fly it all, I put myself in their shoes for a few blissful hours and dreamt of living that life.
Taking Wing: Dreaming Versus Doing
Key Takeaways:
- The author, a lifelong aviation enthusiast, transitioned from a childhood dreamer to a professional pilot and writer for *Flying* magazine, noting that its readership consists of both active pilots ("doers") and aspiring "dreamers."
- The article emphasizes that while dreaming is essential, it must be coupled with action to avoid disillusionment, creating a "virtuous cycle" where doing fuels further dreams and achievements.
- The crucial bridge between dreaming and doing is the creation of a concrete plan, which involves practical steps such as research, budgeting, and breaking down goals to make them tangible and achievable.
- Readers are urged to stop postponing their aspirations, especially in aviation, and to actively plan and pursue their dreams to transform them into reality and avoid future regret.
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