Flying to me is like being a kid and wanting to go out and play. At first you are allowed to open the door and stare outside, BUT you can’t actually go outside. This was the first few days of my training. I read the books, sat and starred at the airplane, but it was [...]

As the sun set, I did a final check of my supplies. Flight plan, sectional, watch, headlamp with a red bulb, bottle of water and a granola bar. And tonight I was going to have dinner at 3500 feet with the twinkling lights of California below me. FAR 61.109 requires private pilot applicants to have [...]

After 22 hours of flying around the skies of Palo Alto and it’s various neighboring airports, I was nearing the end of the first major phase of my flight training. Looming off in the distance was the oh so imposing “Solo” flight. Webster’s dictionary defines the noun Solo (So•lo) as “something undertaken or done alone.” [...]

Every year the Hiller Aviation Museum holds the largest all helicopter airshow on the west coast to much fanfare and celebration. In it’s 9th year, the event was as strong as ever, with helicopter performances from the California Highway Patrol ASTAR, the California Department of Forestry UH-1 Huey, and a California Army National Guard CH-47 [...]

“Hurry up and wait.”  A phrase in that I have become intimately familiar with this past 9 days. Today was the day where we repositioned the entire Operation Southern Partner Team to it’s next set of islands. Our C-130J from the California Air National Guard was all fixed up and was ready to take us [...]

A few days ago, when our CA ANG C-130J from Channel Islands broke down in Guyana with engine and brake problems, I thought our trip was in jeapordy. But the mission commanders of Operation Southern Partner made a few calls and got the “Fighting 5-0″ to step in and help us continue the mission. The [...]

Well guys, I finally made it! I’m sitting on the balcony of my room overlooking the beautiful Caribbean ocean and the night lights of St George, Grenada and the view is amazing. What a long, but satisfying day it’s been. Just 22 hours ago, I was boarding our California Air National Guard C-130J along with [...]

With a sudden jolt I awoke and for a moment forgot where I was. My eyes adjusted to the darkness; red webbed seating, bodies thrown around, wires and bare metal walls, and a hollow drone of the sound of a propeller engine. Then I remembered I was aboard a California Air National Guard C-130J on [...]

Hello everyone! Well, a major announcement today for all the readers of the blog. We have just signed up on YouTube and are now gearing up to bring you a dynamic and first hand account inside aviation’s most unique stories.  While we will still offer world-class photography and personal accounts, these videos will add another dimension [...]

Whoever said this stuff was easy obviously never spent hours at the local coffee shop reviewing hundreds of FAA test questions! Well, I am in the middle of my training and am having the time of my life. With just over 13 hours in my log book, it is safe to say that the honeymoon [...]