Welcome

Welcome to Waving at Airplanes! I’m happy you stopped in. This blog will chronicle my journey in learning to fly. From my first tour of a commercial jet at 2 years old, to deciding I wanted to fly at 9, to FINALLY starting lessons at age 36. I’m starting off with lesson recaps, but hope to add interviews, aviation history articles and book reviews.

I’m learning to fly at a grass strip in the countryside. Someone asked me if I was nervous learning to fly at a grass strip. My answer? “Well, not really. Maybe I just don’t know any better yet.”

Why “Waving at Airplanes?” In my short stint as a preschool teacher I loved teaching the 2 and 3 year olds about the planes and helicopters overhead when we were out on the playground. They eventually grew to know the difference between helicopters and airplanes. I think, given a few more months, we might have really accomplished something! The first time they ran screaming across the playground I had no idea why until I realized they were waving at airplanes. My 2 year old (in the photo above, “flying” a Cessna 172) knows the difference between airplanes and helicopters too, and he too waves at airplanes.

For anyone who loves airplanes or helicopters, or the idea of flight, that childlike joy is a pleasure to witness. While I don’t wave at airplanes anymore, I’ve never lost that childhood interest and fascination.

If you’re reading this, leave a comment, follow the blog, and like my Facebook page. Let’s stay in touch!

—–Maria