Last Saturday, I headed out mid-morning to stop in at two aviation events. Little did I know how awesome the day would turn out. The first stop was at a monthly BBQ at Orlando-Apopka (X04) hosted by First Landings Aviation, the flight school where I’m taking sport pilot lessons. The idea behind the BBQ is not only to generate new business but also to foster camaraderie among its students and alumni. (BTW: It seems to work, FLA just completed a 200-hour month and is one of the busiest sport pilot schools in the south.) The school’s two LSAs were on hand for discovery flights — a Remos and a Piper Sport. More than a couple dozen people showed up. They included a family curious about sport pilot lessons; a pilot based at X04 who takes time most Saturdays to mentor a 16-year-old fellow in all things aviation; a recent FLA sport pilot alumni who had originally planned on flying the Ercoupe he purchased a month ago to the BBQ from a nearby airport, where he had new radios installed (no thanks to a gusty crosswind, he — and everyone else — ended up driving in); a father, who was looking to resume his flying lessons, and his son, who hopes to follow in his dad’s footsteps. Folks mingled, talking about what stage they were at with their lessons, their dreams/hopes to learn to fly and their new airplanes. Several even took turns sitting in the Piper Sport and imagined (unfortunately, the wind remained a strong, direct crosswind so discovery flights were arranged for another day). The enthusiasm among the gathering was new and palpable.
Around 12:30, it was time to head to the next event, the annual fly-in at Bob White Field (X61), just a few minutes up the road. Apparently, the fly-in has been held on the last Saturday in October for many years. I had been anticipating just exactly what it was going to be like to visit the place that had been such a huge part of my younger life and then suddenly no part of my life. It was 18 years or so ago that my mother sold the airport after my dad was killed in an airplane crash — and as many since I’d set foot on it. I had been waiting for the right time to make this pilgrimage and wondered if this was it. As I pulled onto the dirt road leading to the airport, the sound of airplanes could not be missed. By the time I parked, I was in quiet awe at the number of people, cars and, of course, airplanes! This was definitely the right time.
