Well it's three weeks down, and three to go until I start flying real aircraft. I am glad to put another week behind us, and excited to keep moving forward. This week was a week of technical information, and a challenge to my very much non-technical brain. On Tuesday morning we began our study of aerodynamics, and I felt a bit behind from the beginning. What happened to reading and writing? At times I think to myself that I should have been an engineer instead of a history major. Then I took a week of aero, and now I know for sure that I was never meant to be an engineer. That stuff is hard. We tested on Friday, and I passed, though not as well as I would have liked to. Grades have taken on a very different meaning, and though I only missed three questions, it was definitely a little prick in my pride (which is probably a good thing). 3 questions you say? Ya, I know, but those three questions could count for something down the road. See, the way academics are scored here is on a curve where at the end of the year, all our grades are added up, and the person with the highest score gets 100 points. The lowest person gets 0 points. Even if there is say a difference of 10 questions missed during the whole year, the bottom person still gets zero. Sucks. Also, we went to our senior classes graduation on Friday before the test, and they handed out the academic award to the highest scorer. The dude missed three questions the entire year. That's three out of around 700 questions. Unbelievable. But oh well, I'm over it now.
So aero was half of the week. The rest of the week consisted of classes on emergencies in the aircraft and a sim. This is where Paul comes in. You know how in Romans Paul says "The things I want to do I don't do, and the things I don't want to do I do (or something along those lines)." Well thats what flying is kind of like. Now, I admit that I have not flown an aircraft yet, but if the simulators are anything like the actual aircraft, it is very true. At this point, the plane does not do what I want it to do, and does what I don't want it to do. Turn left. What does it do? Descends. How about climb? It looses all it's airspeed. Go figure. Flying the sim was a blast this week, and makes me so excited to get in the actual aircraft in a few weeks. It also reminds me how much I do not know yet. Good thing I've still got a couple weeks to get at least a tad bit more confident.
As time goes on, I'm realizing more and more that I don't think man was ever meant to fly. I know there is the old adage that if man was meant to fly, God would have given him wings. Well...I'm beginning to think it is true. First it's our neanderthal bodies. Let's just say that God did not build our bodies in such a way as to promote flying. Secondly, there is our neanderthal brains. I don't care how good you think you are at multi-tasking, flying takes way more multi-tasking then we are meant to do. Third is the whole law of gravity thing. We have to overcome one of God's laws of physics every time we fly. And that's just the beginning. Oh ya, let's not forget that to fly we need a big ol metal contraption that is always trying to kill us. And, yet, people still fly everyday, and do it well. They learn to overcome their neanderthal brains and bodies, gravity, and learn to deal with that big ol metal contraption they've strapped themselves to. In a strange way, knowing all this just makes me want to do it more. It's a challenge to overcome, and it's exciting. I don't want to make it sound like flying is defying death...it's not nearly that bad. We have great planes, great mechanics, and great instructors. But I am saying that taking this challenge is something I feel very proud about. Not many people are up to this task. I just hope I am. I am excited to be here. I also think they should pay us more, but that's another story.
Well it's Saturday, which is wifeday, so I am off to go on a walk. Please continue to keep my wife and I in your prayers as we come closer to hitting the flightline. God bless.
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