Top 5 Reasons to Learn How to fly

By Matthew Everett

Learning to fly is something that becomes a defining moment in your life. Ask any pilot and you are sure to hear a multitude of stories about things that most people only dream of experiencing. Ask them why they fly and you will likely receive a different answer from each one, but many of the answers will center on the same concepts.

Anyone can Learn to Fly

The most important reason to highlight is that anyone can learn to fly. Airplanes do not care if you are young or old, a man or a woman, or how you vote. The bottom line is that, barring some pretty serious disabilities, you can learn to fly with relative ease.

The Sense of Accomplishment

Learning how to fly will without a doubt become a defining element in your life. It is a significant accomplishment, which carries over into other aspects of your life. Suddenly things that once seemed impossible start to look a little more manageable. You find yourself sitting in the seat of a jumbo jet wondering whether you could land it and thinking you might like to give it a try.

The Freedom of Flight

One of the most memorable flights for most pilots is their first solo. If you ask them why, most pilots would say the freedom. It's the realization that the moment you leave the ground, you can go anywhere and do anything. There is a sense of freedom in flight that is unparalleled on the ground. You find yourself 1000 feet above the ground looking out for miles and miles completely unhindered by what is going on on the ground. It will really change your perspective. A word of caution, flying is addicting. You'll find yourself, like most pilots, dropping by the airport just to run the plane around the pattern. Then you'll head home and face the question, "Where'd you go?" You can then proudly state, "Nowhere."

Aviation Career Opportunities

Everything else aside, aviation is so central in many people's lives, that many people get into aviation as a career. After all, every day people travel long distances for business and the only way to overnight packages is flying. Someone has to fly the aircraft that get those jobs done, and those are only a small segment of flying jobs available. As you read this, there are people enjoying a sightseeing flight, someone is looking at a banner being towed behind a plane, and a patient is being transported to a new hospital via helicopter. What do all those things have in common? Someone who learned how to fly is being paid to pilot the aircraft.

Joining the Group

One thing you can say about flying is that it is a very social experience. Pilots love to talk about flying and they will talk to anybody that will listen. There is never a shortage of talk where pilots are involved. While you may not meet Chuck Yeager at your local airport, it's not out of the realm of possibilities. Flying draws a pretty interesting crowd, and you never know who you are going to meet just wandering around on the ramp. From interesting, old locals to actors and aviation legends, airports are full of pilots of all shapes and sizes and all that is required to join that group is learning to fly.

More Information

For more information on learning to fly see: http://www.aopa.org/letsgoflying/ http://www.cessna.com/learn-to-fly.html

Matthew Everett is a private pilot, aviation writer, and frequent contributor to AviationSchoolsOnline.com. You can follow him on twitter @leaving_tf or find his blog at http://leavingterrafirma.com.