It finally happened!!!

[helitech]

Well, after working 20 years in aviation, I finally got around to learning to fly. I did my first solo today in a 150 and I felt great. Only had 11.5 hours logged and my instructor had me do a couple of touch and gos, everything went well and he told me to pull over and let him out, Oh boy!!! here we go. Was not nervous at all and as I sit here and type means I am in one piece. Actually did quite well.

He soloed a girl with no arms two weeks ago. (Ercope has no rudder pedals)Flys with her feet.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[SIXTO]

congrats, its a nice feeling isnt it?

[cop2b]

Congrats and enjoy while you can.

[DrLewall]

When I first learned to fly, I traded washing airplanes for flying time..but that was when avgas was 75 cents a gal..ahh, the good ol' days

[Ridgeline]

One of my best friends is not only a CHL carrier, fellow church member along with his family, but also a darn good pilot too. He has a 172 that is all decked out and is kept hangered when not in the air. John & Linda along with Jim & Jo and James and Shelly and Carol and I make up the majority of our church security team. So congrats on you solo, and if no one has said before welcome to the forum.

[HowardCohodas]

The moment your wheels and your heart both leap into the air at the same time will always be special. Contratulations on your solo.

[ccman]

Helitech I see you are from AZ. My Brother used to fly at The Grand Canyon. He used to fly the tours. I flew with him twice over San Francisco and over PA. It was a blast. Good luck to you and welcome.

[Jackle1886]

Congrats to you, one of my friends is a flight instructor and works at the local airport. It's nice to be able to take the GF up and over to the lake on a whim.

[morintp]

That's awesome.

My only question is, what do you call a woman with no arms and no legs flying a plane?

[helitech]

Thanks everyone.
I am fortunate because my CFI is a long time friend. He just retired from the AF and recently moved back to town. I work on the plane regularly to offset the cost, but I only have to pay for gas. His time is free. Although I think he wants me to get my private ASAP because he is tired of ferrying aircraft and is looking to have me do it too. He also is the airport manager and a IA, with all of the annuals he is doing, he hardly has the time to ferry aircraft. I would love to have the chance to get paid to fly and build hours too.

[Paymeister]

...what do you call a woman with no arms and no legs flying a plane?

If she's pretty far away, how 'bout "Dot"?

And good for Helitech and for the girl!

[ccman]

What are you waiting for ?. Go talk with Your Friend and let Him know Your in. He can probley see that already in You. Reach for the skies. Good luck and keep us posted.

[JonInNY]

Congrats. That first solo is something you'll remember forever. That 150 is a cute little plane, and fun to fly. I trained in a 152, which is a little peppier, and now fly a 172, although sometimes I take up my friends' 150 just for fun.

Have a great time... fly safe, and keep the shiny side down.

You may or may not have heard these before, but here are some "rules" to fly with:

1) Takeoffs are optional. Landings are mandatory.
2) If you push the stick forward, the houses get bigger. If you pull the stick back, they get smaller.
3) Flying isn't dangerous. Crashing is dangerous.
4) It's always better to be down here wishing you were up there, than up there wishing you were down here.
5) The only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.
6) The propeller is just a big fan in front of the plane used to keep the pilot cool. When it stops, you can actually watch the pilot start sweating.
7) When in doubt, hold on to your altitude. No one has ever collided with the sky.
8) A "good" landing is one from which you can walk away. A "great" landing is one after which they can use the plane again.
9) Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.
10) You know you've landed with the wheels up if it takes full power to taxi to the ramp.
11) The probability of survival is directly proportional to the angle of arrival.
12) Stay out of clouds. The silver lining everyone keeps talking about might be another airplane going in the opposite direction.
13) Reliable sources also report that mountains have been known to hide out in clouds.
14) There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.
15) You start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience.The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck.
16) In the ongoing battle between objects made of aluminum going hundreds of miles per hour and the ground going zero miles per hour, the ground has yet to lose
17) Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, experience usually comes from bad judgment.
18) It's always a good idea to keep the pointy end going forward as much as possible.
19) Remember, gravity is not just a good idea. It's the law. And it's not subject to repeal
20) Always try to keep the number of landings you make equal to the number of takeoffs you've made.
21) The three most useless things to a pilot ?
a) altitude above you
b) runway behind you
c) 1/10 of a second ago.
22) Helicopters can't fly; they're just so ugly the earth repels them.

And my personal favorite: There are old pilots, and bold pilots, but there are no old bold pilots.

[JonInNY]

... when avgas was 75 cents a gal..ahh, the good ol' days

Our strip just went too $5.15 gallon for 100LL. <sigh>

[SIXTO]

23) there are old pilots and there are bold pilots... but there are no old bold pilots.