Every little object held a magic of its own. Never mind that the days of the Spitfires, Zeroes, and Messerschmitts were largely over; an aircraft wheel lying around would suddenly conjure up images of dogfights with wheels falling off; an ashtray made of armament shells would become the subject of heated "expert" discussion because it contained tracer bullets, and one of the most-traded commodities in many a schoolboy's bag would be a dog-eared commando comic book. Those were days devoid of electronic entertainment, where books and dreams were a boy's best friend.
In high school I was introduced to the wonderful books by Captain W.E. Johns and spent every leisure moment following the exploits of Capt. James Bigglesworth (Biggles) and his team of intrepid airmen. It was those books that first gave me an idea of what it was to "feel" the aircraft; I now know what it must have felt to hear the hum of the wind in the wires of a biplane; the same thrill I feel each time I turn final.
Schoolboy fantasies made way for the realities of college life, finding a job and settling down, and the dream of flying faded into the background since raising a family takes precedence over all else. In Toronto of 2014 the dream was awakened once more with a gift voucher for an introductory flight at Toronto Airways, operating out of Buttonville Municipal Airport (soon to be closed). One introductory flight and several flying hours later, I cleared my Rec Permit in the fall of 2016.
On the way to completing my recreational licence, I've met amazing people who contributed immensely to my learning; pilots who have incredible stories to tell (some of them were big-fish stories as well). I'm still learning, sometimes with an Instructor and sometimes as Pilot in Command. In the posts on this blog, I'll try and relate some of the lessons I've learned along the way, and add resources and links that might help other student pilots on their way.
So keep reading and Happy flying!
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