Trying Something New

This will be the start of a new chapter in my aviation "career." Due to the inherent connection between this new endeavor and my flight training and subsequent private pilot exploits, I thought that adding it here would make the most sense. For that matter, since I haven't been doing any flying lately, this gives me a good chance to contribute some additional insights.

First off, I have always been interested in aviation. But only recently have I become more aware of it as an economic and political force (or perhaps pawn). In any case, I believe that any political advance starts with having the particular activity in question be an ingrained part of society. For instance, the ongoing health care debate exists in part because we have become so accustomed to a certain standard of living and care. We can't imagine going backwards.

Apparently, this is not the case with aviation, either general or airline. Outdated technology, low pay, and some pretty awful working conditions constantly amaze and worry me -- how did the industry get to this point? Since I'm far from an expert on such matters, I thought I'd explore what avenues were available to educate and enlighten.

There are actually more options than I had thought, but after looking into one in particular, I decided I'd check it out in person: the Civil Air Patrol. If you are an aviator of some advanced years, you may already know something of this organization. For myself, though definitely not as young as I once was, I know very little. It's something out of the fifties isn't it?

In the back of my mind, I have an idea to turn this little escapade into a running article for a publication like AOPA or EAA. That remains to be seen. For now, I wanted to keep a running journal of the experience, since it looks like a valuable, though perhaps underutilized, asset to aviation.

I look forward to finding out more about the group, and joining if it looks like the time commitment will work with my schedule. I hope you'll enjoy learning a bit more about it as well. Let's go!