A PILOT LOOKS AT 50

“I have spent over 2 solid years in the sky.  And after 2 divorces, 3 bankruptcies, 1 merger  and a furlough, I can even call myself a ‘Real Pilot’.”

Well, I went and done it, folks.  This month, I turned the Big 5-0!  In celebration (or lament), here’s an abbreviated update of my very first Cap'n Aux Blog post, “A PILOT LOOKS AT TWENTY” *. . . . 

“ Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” 

—Hellen Keller

Fifty years.  Wow.  Over two fifths of that spent flying airplanes—and over 20 years of that for a major airline.  At 18,000 some-odd hours of flight time, that means I have spent over 2 solid years in the sky.

With 2 divorces, 3 airline bankruptcies, 1 merger  and 1 furlough under my belt, I can even call myself a “real pilot.”

DHC-8 wing silhouetted by the setting sun.

I love my job, but hate my career.
In this fickle industry, it’s no small miracle to get to the finish line with the same company.  If a pilot loses his job, either from furlough, firing or company bankruptcy, he starts at the bottom somewhere else—with starting pay.  While hired by one airline, I have no idea what the name on the door will be come retirement, or if there will even be a door left out of which to walk.  Indeed, as we speak, another merger appears to be looming on the horizon.

Will Fly for Food:
Staring down the barrel of a furlough.

But, day by day, I love going to work.  I get to fly cool airplanes, get to be The Man, wear those bitchin’ stripes, and sometimes even have a good time with a fun crew on  a layover in an exotic locale.
Still, by and large, it’s like any job.  You go to work, do your stuff, and count the minutes till you get to go home.  On average, I’m away from home four days a week.  Hotel rooms are more of a nuisance than an invitation to adventure...

My favorite vacation is not knowing in which country I’ll wake up the next day.

Visiting my buddy John in Colombia.

And yet, adventure calls.  And therein lies the greatest benny of the airline industry:  to see the world.

As a young pilot, I deliberately bounced all over the map while climbing the aviation ladder.  I’ve flown the Alaska bush out of Juneau, captained for a seaplane company in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and driven four-engine turboprops into Aspen and Steamboat Springs, CO.   During free time, I’d race out the door at every opportunity for some random world locale, armed with nothing more than a backpack and a vague idea of destination.  My favorite trip is not knowing in which country I’ll wake up the next day. 

My favorite world locales are:  Kyoto, Venice and Telluride . . . and any tiny fishing village with no phone, paved road or English.

Marksan and I join two airline employees for an epic adventure.

From atop a camel, I’ve seen the sunrise over the the Great Pyramids of Giza.  I’ve Eurailed through Europe and backpacked through Japan.  I’ve partied at Oktoberfest in Munich, Independence Day in Washington, and Mardi Gras in New Orleans.  I survived a direct hit from Hurricane Hugo in the Virgin Islands, and an earthquake in California.  I golfed St. Andrews, rock climbed the Australian Outback, ice climbed Switzerland, paraglided Japan, skied Canada, snowboarded the Swiss Alps, sailed the British Virgin Islands.  I’ve snorkeled Thailand, Tahiti and the Great Barrier Reef.  I’ve SCUBA dived shipwrecks in the Caribbean, with sharks and stingrays in the Caymans, and with giant turtles and humpback whales in Hawaii.  I've ridden mules in the Grand Canyon, elephants in Thailand, and outriggers in Tahiti.  I've kissed the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, the Blarney stone in Dublin, and a Swedish flight attendant in Frankfurt.  With 3 good buddies, I once spent a week in a tiny Venezuelan fishing village, hours from any phone, paved road or English speaker.
I didn't plan these things according to some elaborate "Bucket List;" they just happened.

I’ve witnessed a 360-degree rainbow, and a comet blazing amidst the ethereal shimmers of the Aurora Borealis.

Rounding out my 5 favorite world locales are:  Kyoto, Interlaken (Switzerland), Venice and Telluride—and any tiny fishing village with no phone, paved road or English.

Of course the cockpit of my machine has afforded equally grand sights and adventures.   I’ve seen the full moon rise over the Juneau Icefield, and witnessed a 360-degree rainbow in an Alaskan rain shower.  I’ve seen a comet blazing across a moonless night amidst the ethereal shimmers of the Aurora Borealis.  The Andromeda galaxy, the farthest object visible to the naked eye, is doubly so from the clear, thin air at 39,000 feet.  I’ve seen countless meteor showers, gorgeous sunsets and amazing sunrises.

Outriggin' Tahiti.

Lightning storms are incredibly awe-inspiring when viewed from above.  I’ve piloted over 250 “flightseeing” trips over the Grand Canyon, each one different and equally spectacular.  In the Virgin Islands I’ve spied eery, slate grey waterspouts—tornadoes on the sea—snaking across the water.  On countless Alaskan flights from treetop level, I’ve seen moose, bear, eagles, and endless pods of whales, from humpback to orca to beluga.  I once spotted a giant brown bear a few hundred feet below as he took an angry swat at me.*

Unfortunately I have scant photographic evidence of these spectacular sights, other than that which is indelibly etched in my mind’s eye.

Wings over Sedona.  (My first "landscape reflect by the wing" pic...but not my last ;)

I LOVE MY JOB!  And there’s so much more to do.  China, New Zealand, Jamaica, Eastern Europe, Africa . . . they are beckoning, whispering in my ear.  And if my little bucket list hasn’t yet challenged you to get out there and see the world, let me leave you with my favorite inspirational travel quote of all . . .

Pickin' at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival.

“The world is a Disneyland made just for YOU-.”

—Me :-)

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* See “A Pilot Looks at Twenty.”

*See my previous post, “The Sky Fell.”

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Posting July 13th at 0000z (July 12th 1700MST)
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