WEBVTT

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Well, flying's more than just pushing forward the throttles.

2
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There's a certain magic to it. Not because of the power of flight, you know, the feeling you get when you start down the runway, but there's a certain magic just to the role of being a pilot.

3
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Well, the role of a pilot, it's not like a show-off. It's a blend of showmanship.

4
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Well, like when I take a friend flying, a non-pilot friend, and we go up and I get a double enjoyment out of this because I get to fly the airplane and I also get to show my friend the skills that I've learned to be a pilot.

5
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Usually he flies some and we have a good time, but he's always kind of in awe of me, not because of my person, but because I possess the skills to fly the airplane and I think that's kind of a magical quality.

6
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Yeah, it's kind of an ego trip.

7
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But flying's responsibility too, and I think this is the most important point.

8
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The regulations state that the safety of any flight is the sole responsibility of the pilot.

9
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And I think this is what pilots, when they're student pilots, learn first.

10
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In fact, they learn on their first lesson when they pre-flight the airplane, and it auls them.

11
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Now pre-flight, or really pre-flighting, is the general inspection of an airplane.

12
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The pilot usually walks around the airplane and he looks at all the outside mechanical features of his airplane and he makes sure that they're all okay.

13
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He checks the surfaces to make sure they're smooth. He visually checks to make sure there's gas in the gas tanks.

14
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He checks the wheels. He drains the fuel supply, the propeller, the spinner, like the spinner, just to make sure that it's not going to fall off when he's flying.

15
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And only then, when he's satisfied that the airplane is airworthy, does he get inside and begin the rest of it.

16
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And once inside, there's the pre-flight checklist, and then you start the plane up and taxi it out and do the engine run-up.

17
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And here you make sure that everything that's supposed to be running is running properly and check them against the gauges and everything that's running is running right and it's okay.

18
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And only then do you take the airplane out, put it on the runway, and take off.

19
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I think that this comes as a shock to most students.

20
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It's not until after they've had a couple of lessons do they get used to the routine of just preparing an airplane to fly.

21
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To me, flying presents a challenge. It's not like, well, I don't picture it like man against nature, like camping would be.

22
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To me, it's more like building a harmony between man and machine, and then you would try to achieve balance with your machine.

23
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I think that flying represents the epitome of man working in a technological environment to achieve some end.

24
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And I think the end in this case is the art, the perfection of flying, the perfection of one's skills.

25
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I love flying, and I hope I always will.

26
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Thank you.