Solo! (Part 3)

Excepts from Eagles Tales, a collection of essays by my colleagues in the Aeronautical Science Department of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University continues. Eagle Tales is available for sale at 20 percent off with the coupon code ET2011 on checkout through the BluewaterPress website. A portion of each sale goes toward the Jim Lewis Memorial Scholarship fund in the Aeronautical Science Department.

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I always knew aviators were supposed to be bold and brave.  I believed I was born to be one and therefore had to possess all the bravado required, as all aviators before me.  Right?  Yea!  Maybe.  Perhaps . . .

Then why was I scared?  And what was there to be afraid of?  Thousands, hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions of pilots before me had soloed.  Now it was my turn.  As I taxied back along the runway, I wondered what I got myself into.  And I wondered what of the outcome.  But deep down, really deep down, somewhere in the cavernous, innermost reaches of my being, I knew.  I really knew…

I knew I could do it!

The old man would not turn me loose if there were any doubt in his mind.  Right?

I looked around one last time for other airplanes in the pattern and saw none.  Then I brought the power up a little more and swung the Cub out into the center of the grass runway.  With a deep breath, I eased the throttle all the way forward, pushed forward on the stick, and applied some right rudder.

The Cub picked up speed and as it did, I held the stick forward bringing the tail off the ground.  I noticed the feeling had suddenly returned to my legs.  As the airspeed needle began bobbing on the lower limits of the dial, I looked forward and out to the right where Charlie was standing.  There were a couple of other pilots standing with him, caught up in this, the most exciting moment of my life!

I could feel the Cub getting light on her wheels and noticed the airspeed indicator was passing 45 mph.  I eased on a little more backstick pressure making the load on the mains even lighter.  A couple of more moments went by and the tires slowly eased off the earth.  As I felt the tires break ground, I released a little of the pressure on the stick.  When the airspeed indicator nudged 55, I brought the nose higher and we, the Cub and I, by ourselves for the first time, climbed away into the late afternoon Florida skies.

God!  It was magnificent!

For the first time in my life, I felt as though I was in control over what was going to happen to me.  No one else had input or a say-so or any other kind of influence over what was going to happen to me.  It was going to be up to me.  Me!  Alone!  I was the only one now who could cast a vote as to whether or not I would live or die, land or crash, end life or begin living!

I looked down to the earth as the J?3 and I climbed into the sky.  I could see Charlie standing next to the runway as I passed over his house and the sheds, and then over Wiggins Road.  The western sky was magnificent!  The sun shone through the humid air and reflected off the dust and haze making for one of the most beautiful sunsets ever!

I climbed higher into sky.  I was frightened, I was scared, and I was excited!  I could feel the beat of my heart over the sound of the Continental engine!  For the first time in my life, I was truly aware of living!

While I was intensely conscious of living life, I also realized I was still thinking of the possible headlines that could appear on the front page of the Tampa Tribune and Tampa Times the next day.  Man!  That would be awful!  But what the hell, I thought; and then I could actually remember reasoning that should I be killed, headlines on the front page of a newspaper would be my least concern!

Six Niner Hotel and I reached 700 feet of altitude and I looked down at the ground.  Specifically, I looked at Charlie’s little airstrip.  It was a sight I had seen many times in the past four weeks and it looked comfortable and familiar.  All at once, I became aware that my breathing was again normal and things were okay.

Then I started laughing!  I guess it was a nervous laugh, I was not really sure.  Then I had the thought that, Damn!  I am really alone in this airplane!  The seat up front seemed incredibly empty and I could actually see the instrument panel and read the airspeed indicator for a change.  This was novel!

-30-

© 2010 J. Clark

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