Page 4 - Volume 18 Number 2

2 • TWIN & TURBINEFEBRUARY 2014editor’sbriefingKeeping The Fire GoingHis name was Brandon, and he was eight. His mother wanted to know if I’d take him up and give him a little “flying lesson”, because all he would talk about was airplanes and how he wanted to fly one. It was an easy sell.You and I have been there. Maybe we were an eager-eyed youngster once, or perhaps a middle-aged always-wanted-to-fly student prospect. Brandon was lucky; he had a parent who was willing to make his dream happen. A lot of us had to find aviation on our own, or perhaps through a coworker or friend who invited us out to the airport for the $100 hamburger. No matter what our age when we first caught the bug, it changed our life forever.I had to remind myself of how times have changed since I was a young buck. Brandon’s mother was raising him on her own; the only mention of Dad was “he’s not involved”. She was adorned with a small nose stud and a tramp-stamp tattoo on her shoulder, and she continuously snapped pictures with a smart phone. But, none of this Millennialism mattered. She cared, and she was proud of the mid-term grades Brandon had earned, so his reward was to go flying.We strapped him in atop two cushions, Mom and big sister climbed into the rear seats, and Brandon immediately assumed the role of hands-on pilot. “Did you check the gas?” was his first PIC comment. Already he knew the essentials of a good preflight. Too short to actuate the nosegear steering, he nevertheless gave it a good stretch and filed the moving pedals away for future reference. Once airborne, I turned the controls over to him and let him steer us along a highway, eventually returning to the airportby following a courseline on the panel. Would I have been able to do that at his age?Once the initial flight experience was over, Brandon wanted to know if we could just “hang out”; he was in no hurry to go home. I assured him that pilots did a lot more “hanging out” than they did flying, and showed him where the local loafers congregated to evaluate passing aircraft. I imagine we’ll see him growing up in that airport lounge.The point I’m making is, we’re going to need those Brandons to keep our industry alive, and it’s up to us to encourage anyone showing an interest. Their age, social status, and ambitions probably aren’t going to match our own, but we have to take time to share the world of aviation with them. That youngster may someday have a business that needs a company airplane to succeed, or he or she could eventually be a city councilperson in charge of the town’s airport. Do not neglect the signs of budding aviation addiction.*** *In this issue, we’re honored to have an informative article on managing your radar’s antenna tilt function, written by radar guru Archie Trammell. Archie is the go-to guy for anyone wanting to truly understand their radar’s operation, and we’re fortunate to be sharing his wisdom.We’re also spotlighting a dream upgrading of a Cessna 421C, Kevin Dingman gives us a reminder about reading airport signage, Tom Turner analyzes the First 400 Feet of a missed approach, Jim Gregory interviews the president of Hartzell Propeller and David Miller makes the case for maintaining a proper attitude regarding judgment. There’s something here for everyone.LeRoy CookLeRoy Cook.