What Next?

I started my flight training with the goal of earning the private pilot certificate and nothing more. Why put more time and money into this thing if I was just going to do it for fun? Of course, that was not the course.

Image by Ivan Bertolazzi/Pexels

The trip to and from the airport was up to two hours in the car and the lessons were another two or three hours. This meant at least a half day commitment (both Saturdays and Sundays most weekends) and I was already working long hours during the week. I love my wife and I like to spend time with her, and we had a baby on the way. I would need to be at home more.

Now there is this well-known notion called the aviation bug and it bites hard. You will suddenly find yourself thinking about flying on those days that you are not. Suddenly, you no longer mind that hour-long drive to Long Island; you don’t mind the traffic anymore. You don’t care about doing your preflight in the subfreezing temperatures as long as there is not a lick of moisture. You want to fly in the sky as often as able. You gotta scratch that itch. You want more, you need more, and you come up against the realization that your training will not end with the private certificate. That damned bug.

Earning my private pilot certificate was a huge achievement, but I wasn’t done. I took a few months off from exercising my newly earned privileges for some family time but by year’s end, I was back. I had to come back. The notorious instrument training lay ahead and I’ve written about it before. It was more challenging, eye-opening, and took longer than I had expected but I made the right decision in obtaining the instruction and rating.

So, what’s next? That question will be out there for some time. I do not aspire ascending to the airlines. I cannot plainly articulate why but I know that it is not for me, at least at this moment. And then there’s COVID. Ugh, COVID. Seeing what it has done to this industry is disconcerting. Many in the pilot community suggest that it should not be a deterrent to continuing and I’m doing my best to subscribe to that but it’s easier said than done.

Anyway, tiring of the Skyhawk and longing for change, I did an advanced Cirrus transition training course and obtained my high-performance endorsement. I suppose that is what’s next – building time. Enhance my proficiency; add endorsements and ratings, and other experiences while contemplating the next big thing along my pilot path.

Do you have any thoughts, ideas, or opinions? Have the events of 2020 changed your course? Let me know in the comments below.