Go/No-go

The go/no-go decision is a fundamental in any form of aviation. It refers to the review of the pilot, the aircraft, and the environment and an evaluation of whether the flight will be safe or should be postponed.

Of course, a similar decision must be made even when deciding whether or not to learn to fly in the first place. As you can see, I have pretty much decided to "go", but at this point, I still have not finalized the loan, scheduled a first lesson, or otherwise seriously committed my time and money. I could still back out if I wanted to. I am at the edge at which many people find themselves, whether faced with a decision like mine or something else...a new job, a new relationship, a child, or maybe even just trying to decide whether to get a pet.

Unless you are very impulsive, you learn as much as you can up front, to decide whether you are on the right track or not. As have I. I mentioned that I played around quite a bit with the computer flight simulators. And I have also bought quite a few books about aviation. Of course, these things only go so far, and I will soon have to literally put my money where my mouth is, as I kiss my finances goodbye....

Nevertheless, I will list the books that I have acquired so far, and I will leave it to you to decide how much is too much.

"The Student Pilot's Flight Manual" by William Kershner
A very complete step-by-step lesson plan for the private license.

"Stick and Rudder" by Wolfgang Langewiesche
A classic description of the "feel" of flying and a good translation of airplane behavior into English.

"Avoiding Common Pilot Errors" by John Stewart
Written by an Air Traffic Controller, this book is probably better suited for someone who has some flying experience, but on the other hand, it is a good idea to avoid bad habits altogether rather than try to un-learn them.

"101 Things To Do With Your Private Pilot's License" by Leroy Cook
Another book better suited for post-checkride flying, but still a good reference for keeping a few advanced tidbits in the back of your mind while learning.

"A Guide to Weather" by Richard Whitaker, Editor (written by a whole bunch of meteorologist-types)
This is a non-aviation book, but I picked it up because of the very good photos, illustrations, and descriptions of common weather patterns.

That's it....Of course, that's just the list of the books I actually paid for....Then there are the other little things:

A membership to AOPA gets you the AOPA Airport Directory and a subscription to AOPA Pilot or Flight Training (I receive the latter).

A subscription to Plane & Pilot magazine

Free samples from local FBO's of GA News and Pacific Flyer periodicals

Countless AOPA, ASF, and FAA brochures, booklets, pamphlets, leaflets, flyers, etc., etc. about every topic you can think of

Various sample packages due to my various subscriptions and online visits, such as aircraft manufacturers' brochures, sample training DVD's, etc.

And that's just the printed material....I've got a heap of paper and not a single hour of instruction time yet....I can't wait; can you tell?