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Charting a Course Towards a Memorable Pilot Gift

Thinking outside of the box and finding unique items could be just the ticket for a memorable gift that’s easy to give and fun to receive.

A discarded taxiway sign makes a great gift for the proud owner of a B-model Cessna 170. [Credit: Jim Stevenson]
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Airplane owners are challenging to shop for, often requesting expensive, specific parts for their own aircraft that are impractical as gifts.
  • The most memorable gifts tend to be authentic, unique items that once flew on or were installed in other aircraft, such as vintage control yokes, airline memorabilia, or military aviation artifacts.
  • Other successful gift ideas include personalized items like custom models of their plane, replicas of tail numbers, keychains made from aircraft skin, or apparel featuring their specific aircraft.
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Whether it’s our birthday or Christmas, we airplane owners are a troublesome lot to shop for. When asked for gift ideas, we immediately rattle off specific, specialized parts that require serial numbers to order and are probably on backorder. When pressed, we’ll provide dreamy descriptions of various avionics, engines, propellers, and other upgrades well into the five-figure price range. 

This is problematic for our loved ones. They want to find something special and unique, something that compliments the hobby we love so dearly. But the likelihood of finding a reasonably-priced gift that we’ll actually enjoy can be frustratingly low. 

Jason McDowell

Jason McDowell is a private pilot and Cessna 170 owner based in Madison, Wisconsin. He enjoys researching obscure aviation history and serves as a judge for the National Intercollegiate Flying Association. He can be found on Instagram as @cessnateur.

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