Letter to the Editor

9/2/2014

I wrote the following letter to the Editor of the COPA magazine (Cirrus Owner's Pilot Association) and wanted to share it with you, and it was published in this month's magazine:.

Private pilots don't always get the recognition they deserve, and that may be due to the fact that most people don't even know someone who flies for pleasure.  They fly for a number of reasons, but mainly because they simply like flying.  It's an expensive hobby and certainly not for everyone, but to all the pilots I've met, including my own husband, Jeff, there is no place they would rather be than up in the clouds.

Besides flying for pleasure, these pilots sign up for VAC (Veterans Airlift Command) flights, where they fly ad disabled veteran or a member of his/her family for various reasons.  They also make Angel Flights, transporting an injured or sick individual to their home or to a hospital.  I can speak from experience about an Angel Flight because I was the "angel" on a flight home from Alabama last year. We were attending a COPA event in Mobile, and I had to be hospitalized.

Jeff had to fly home to make arrangements for my care once I was released from the hospital.  There were two options available for getting me home.  He could fly our plane back to Mobile, pick me up and fly home.  The other option came from two COPA pilots who generously offered another solution. They suggested that Jeff return to Alabama on a commercial flight.  Once back in Mobile, they would fly us both home in their jet.

Under normal circumstances, I would have been beyond delighted to fly home on a jet, but I was not in a good place mentally, so the ride was more thrilling for Jeff than myself.  For either angel or veteran flights, the pilot picks up the cost of fuel and the passengers ride for free.  I know firsthand how expensive aviation fuel is for our airplane, so I can only imagine the cost of fuel for a jet.

For those of you reading this who have not personally been the recipient of the generosity of a COPA pilot, it is a humbling experience. Two pilots that I had never met, were kind enough to fly me back to Washington so that I could be close to my family.  There are not enough kind words or thanks to give to the pilots. Their kindness makes them both heroes in my eyes.

My hat is off the many pilots who give of their time and money to provide help to others when they need it most.

P