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Paying it forward

newt

Well Known Member
I’ve always taken the view that we’re all only in aviation temporarily, so we have a bit of a responsibility to make sure we’re replaced when we bow out.

If each one of us can find ONE person and inspire them into a life-long love of flying, our numbers will be maintained.

More powerfully, if we each find TWO people to become pilots, our numbers will double overnight.

Sounds easy, huh?

With that in mind, I’ve behaved as if it’s some kind of regulatory breach to fly an RV with an empty passenger seat. It’s usually pretty straightforward to find someone who’s never been in a small plane and invite them for a fly-away day trip lunch, or a trip to a museum, or an airshow, or whatever.

By doing that, I’ve flown hundreds of passengers. When they’ve inevitably asked how much it costs, I’ve always told them I’m going anyway whether they come or not, so they’re not costing anything. Keeping money out of it makes everything simple anyway.

But I also tell them that they’re on the hook for giving me a free flight when they get their pilot license.

“Ha ha. As if I’d ever do that.”

But some of them do, when I successfully infect them. So far I’ve “collected” seven Australian private pilot licenses, a handful of recreational pilot certificates (our rough analog to your Light Sport), and three airplane purchases that I know of.

I try to be more contagious than covid, and I tell them that these free flights can be very expensive. RV grins for everybody!

One of my first victims was Chris. I’d evangelized at him about how great airplanes were on twitter. His first general aviation experience was received when I moved from Adelaide to Sydney, and he accompanied me on the ferry flight when I went back to collect the RV a few weeks later.

We didn’t quite make it all the way — a line of TSRA and TCU behind the Great Dividing Range necessitated a diversion and an overnight stop at Wagga Wagga, and I tied the RV down and we both airlined it home. I went back and finished the trip the following weekend.

Meanwhile Chris went out and booked flying lessons. Since then he’s collected his private, then done more training for tail wheel, aerobatics and formation, before going on and getting his commercial.

And last year he bought a beautifully restored 1946 Cessna 140.

This weekend he was at AusFly at Narromine, and asked if we could do a photo mission so he could get the airplane he owns and the airplane that started it all in one shot.

So we did, and here’s the shot.

I figure my free flight has cost him at least a couple of hundred thousand dollars, and he says it’s the reason he doesn’t own a house.

He seems happy. :D

- mark
 

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Nice

Mark,

I enjoyed your post and agree - giving rides to the uninitiated is a blast. It's a nice pic you've attached, too!

Best regards,
Mike
 
I've been working with my good friend after he made the mistake of mentioning he might like to get his PPASEL. He's been doing good with the King schools program, but I'd like to see him fly more. Every time he flies with me I explain what I'm doing and why. I've been trying to get him to start making radio calls but so far he refuses to go near the PTT button.

I even bought him a new A-20 but the only way he would accept it is if I told him it was a "loaner" and he has to return it to me when he's done with it! Hope that day never comes....

-Marc
 
Great way of looking at it. I know I've collected three PPL's so far doing that, with a couple more probables still in process.

I'm apparently more efficient, however, at selling Vans aircraft to new flyers. So far there my count is 7 people I've given rides to that have either started building one, or bought one. The "Free $100,000 ride" is a real thing.
 
Our EAA chapter does Young Eagles flights about 3x a year. It's a great way to initiate kids. I don't know how how many pilots have come out of that, but it's really cool watching the kids.
 
Chris loves putting air under the wheels of that 140

Hi Mark,
I know Chris. We fly out of the same airport. He is a great guy. It is great to hear his story.
A few months ago, a guy came into the hangar where I was finishing off building my 7, with lots of questions. We talked for a while and I answered all his questions. Seemed a bit strange, but there was a curiosity, so I stopped working on the plane so we could talk. Next weekend, he turned up again with more questions, so the same happened. A week later, the same happened, but this time, his wife came into the hanger a little while later. Turns out, she was learning to fly. We had a missing man formation planned that day, so the gentleman’s wife came along with me in one of the 7’s in from in our hangar for the flight and really enjoyed it. A few months down the track and he is also learning to fly, and they picked up a 14a tail kit locally, and have the rest on order. The tail is nearly finished already.
It is great to be able to satisfy someone’s curiosity about the RV’s, give them a ride and get them hooked.
 
Hi Mark,
I know Chris. We fly out of the same airport. He is a great guy. It is great to hear his story.

Australia is a small town :)

A few months ago, a guy came into the hangar where I was finishing off building my 7, with lots of questions. We talked for a while and I answered all his questions. Seemed a bit strange, but there was a curiosity, so I stopped working on the plane so we could talk. Next weekend, he turned up again with more questions, so the same happened. A week later, the same happened, but this time, his wife came into the hanger a little while later. Turns out, she was learning to fly.

It sounds like he'd decided to build a -14 by the end of visit 2, and brought the more experienced pilot along for validation. That's outstanding!


It is great to be able to satisfy someone’s curiosity about the RV’s, give them a ride and get them hooked.

I don't want to say it works every time, but ... it works every time.

My most recent ab initio victim is currently at Narromine, competing in the NSW State Aerobatics Championships. I bet he didn't see himself doing that two years ago, huh.

- mark
 
Our EAA chapter does Young Eagles flights about 3x a year. It's a great way to initiate kids. I don't know how how many pilots have come out of that, but it's really cool watching the kids.

Young Eagles is a great program, I’m told. Years ago, I was a mission pilot for the CAP for several years and cadet orientation flights were a regular thing. I’ve flown dozens of those and they were always gratifying and fun. Two years ago I signed up to do Young Eagles and have volunteered to do flights for both EAA chapters where I’m a member. I’ve done the background check, have the certificate and the packets. Both chapters will get 30-50 kids signed up. I show up and park my plane on the ramp, and it always draws a crowd. It’s the only RV in either chapter, in fact might be the only Experimental. The kids fly for hours in the cherokees and Cessnas that make up the bulk of the EAA membership at both airports here but the fact that I can only fly one passenger puts me only on backup duty in case of a bigger than expected group. (Perhaps uncharitably), I do wonder about a slight level bias against flying kids in an Experimental airplane. Anyway…I do fly other folks, friends and family, when I can (one at a time;)), but i’ve stopped signing up for Young Eagles.
 
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Mac, sorry to hear you're relegated to back up duty. I'm the Young Eagles coordinator for our EAA chapter. I make it a point to ensure that every volunteer pilot that makes the effort to show up gets to fly some kids. Our chapter is fortunate enough to have several experimentals, including RVs, participate in our events, most of them being two place aircraft. We sometimes fly 2 (or 3) kids in our four place aircraft, but usually it's a brother/sister or two best friends kind of thing, that they request. Most kids love a little stick time (with pilot concurrence, of course) and one "stuck" in the back seat is sort of getting cheated, if you ask me. Sounds like the events you've attended are more focused on getting all attendees a flight, than the quality of each flight.
On several occasions I've had pilots (fully qualified) from other chapters ask to participate at our events, which I welcome. If you go to yeday.org , you should see the 6 closest YE events scheduled in your area. I'd contact the coordinator of those event's, I'm guessing they'd love to have you fly for them.

Doug
Seattle area
 
Most kids love a little stick time (with pilot concurrence, of course) and one "stuck" in the back seat is sort of getting cheated, if you ask me. Sounds like the events you've attended are more focused on getting all attendees a flight, than the quality of each flight.

This is a bit of a bugbear of mine.

I’d love to be able to run or participate in a proper Young Eagles program in Australia, but we can’t, because the new flight rules regulatory suite that was passed a year or two ago on the pretence of alignment with the FARs includes CASR 91.155(2), which makes it a criminal offence punishable by up to $18,000 fines to permit anyone who doesn’t have a pilot license to handle the controls of an Australian aircraft.

So we can’t give stick time to kids. Heck, we technically can’t even ask our own family members to hold things straight and level while we’re refolding a map.

There are some discussions underway regarding a path forward that might see the regulator permit a Young Eagles program, but it’s early days and none of us are sure what that’ll look like yet.

In the meantime, the best we can do is sightseeing joyflights, which, IMHO, completely misses the point of a Young Eagles flight, which would ideally leave the recipient with the knowledge that they can actually fly an airplane because they actually have.

- mark
 
My most recent ab initio victim is currently at Narromine, competing in the NSW State Aerobatics Championships. I bet he didn't see himself doing that two years ago, huh.

Results are in: Lee Campbell-Smith collected medals for first in each round, and first over all. Entry class, known program.

Heck of a way to kill a Saturday afternoon!

- mark
 
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