Sad Sights and Happy Sightings

FLYING Staff

Sunday, January 14, 2007 at 10:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

The article contrasts the perceived luxury of private jet travel, which can sometimes be fraught with stress, unhappiness, and strained interpersonal dynamics (e.g., a hurried woman, a bickering couple on the Concorde).
In contrast, the author finds genuine joy, camaraderie, and a sense of freedom in general aviation and simpler flight experiences, such as witnessing an airport wedding or exhilarating flights in trikes, jets, and helicopters with friends.
The narrative suggests that the true spirit and liberating potential of flight are found not in opulence, but in authentic experiences, human connections, and the unadulterated passion for aviation itself.

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The sight was breathtakingly sad. A middle-aged woman wearing a bright red blazer scurried across the tarmac to her waiting NetJets Cessna Encore. I sat on a bench just outside the entrance to our FBO, transfixed, wondering why she was hurrying. I had seen her before.

A few minutes earlier I had watched as she maneuvered a BMW 750Li to the front door of the elegantly appointed building, complete with its attractive ladies behind the counter, fresh baked cookies and Starbucks coffee brewing machine. On the tarmac, I had seen a thin, fit looking, gray-haired man swinging his newspaper, still in its delivery bag, around in an idle way. He radiated impatience. As this woman of a certain age and a certain weight scuttled to her jet, I walked into the linemen’s office and said to nobody in particular, “I thought the whole idea of having a private jet at your disposal was that you never had to rush to a plane.”