On a trip from Tampa, Florida, to New Orleans, FLYING contributor Dick Karl had a bird strike–a big one. [Courtesy: Dick Karl]
Key Takeaways:
An experienced pilot, recovering from a serious illness and nearing 80, faces significant hurdles returning to aircraft ownership, primarily due to prohibitive aviation insurance costs.
Despite decades of predictable and affordable premiums, including a successful claim for a bird strike that totaled his previous aircraft, his insurance for a jet dramatically increased to nearly $93,000 at age 77, forcing him to sell it.
He is now exploring options for smaller aircraft like a Cirrus SR22 or Cessna 340, where insurance, while still expensive ($35,000-$42,000 annually), might be more manageable if his health allows him to fly again.
There were several months last winter when I cared nothing about airplanes. Bedridden for a month by the one-two punch of a bone marrow transplant for acute myeloid leukemia, I was so sick that I didn’t think about my lifelong love—aviation.
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Dick Karl is a cancer surgeon who appreciates the beauty and science involved in both surgery and flying. Dick’s monthly Gear Up celebrates the human side of flying. He writes about his enthusiasm for both the machines and the people who fly and maintain them.
