Page 6 - JULY 20 TNT

Three days after the ventilator was removed, I told one of my physicians that I would be leaving the hospital in three more days. Dr. Sapna Iyer politely told me it was her decision, not mine. I thought to myself I need to prove to her it could be done, and it became another goal!
The next day, a good friend of mine, a cardiologist and a pilot, told me he wanted to do a flyby of the hospital. He texted me from the Montgomery Airport (KMYF) that he was about to depart, knew where my room was located, and that it faced the base leg to Runway 28R. A few minutes later, Paul Teirstein, flies by my window in his Great Lakes and wags his wings. It was truly a wonderful sight.
The following day, two days after I told Dr. Iyer I would be leaving in three, she came into my room and said to me, “You are medically cleared. You need to write a story!” During my stay in the ICU, and afterward, a number of my friends contacted the staff directly and told them about my passion for flying, volunteer work and Angel Flight West. They knew I wanted to get back to flying as soon as possible.
I also learned that Jane had contracted the coronavirus from me, but thankfully she had relatively mild symptoms. I was relieved to hear that, and it also meant I wouldn’t have to quarantine away from her. Discharged, with no prescribed medications, I wheeled out of the hospital into her arms!
Recovery
Recovery wasn’t easy. During my two weeks of quaran- tine, I struggled each day to walk a few more steps, do more work around the house, work longer hours on my aviation business, continue my projects as the Safety Officer of Angel Flight West, and talk with the large number of friends who reached out with prayers and kind thoughts. I used a walker for two days, moved to a cane for three more, then put them away. I was determined to work as hard at recovery as the doctors and nurses did to save my life.
On the last day of my quarantine, Jane and I took to the skies in our Cirrus SR22. It was tough moving the heavy
doors to our hangar, but it felt so good. We went up and did an entire series of steep turns (one of our favorites), toured the San Diego countryside and practiced an approach. The next day a friend of ours, Mike Turk, joined me in our Eclipse, both of us with masks, to make sure that I could fly that as well. I was teaching one of my Eclipse clients two days later and completed my Eclipse recurrent the following day with a PPE.
Ten days after my quarantine, I was off to FlightSafety at DFW for my PC-12 recurrent, flying my Eclipse to Texas. It was surreal to be at one of the largest airports in the world and experience the lack of traffic. I love airplane noise, so I missed that. I resumed my Part 135 charter flights the day after returning from FlightSafety.
Before every flight, I assess whether or not I am safe to fly, except now with more diligence. My AME and friend, Dr. John Raniolo in Phoenix, Arizona, was in contact with me during my recovery to ensure I was medically ready to fly. One month after my quarantine ended, he renewed my First Class Medical Certificate.
I remembered the pledge to myself to recognize the medical staff and others at Kaiser. I wrote a long detailed letter to the Kaiser Board of Directors, identifying as many people as I could remember, describing the passion and care of their colleagues. I probably didn’t realize the true impact of my experience upon my family, friends and the staff at Kaiser until I wrote that letter and it was published widely in our community. One nurse told me afterward that she had been anxious about going to work due to the virus. After she read my letter thanking the staff and the difference she made in my life, she felt she could conquer the world!
Like those who help all of us on a daily basis, it is im- portant to remember how others are impacted by diseases such as SARS-COV-2. Be safe, and enjoy the wonderful opportunity we have to fly above this unique planet.
With 11,000+ hours of pilot- ing more than 100 aircraft models Rich Pickett still has a passion for flying. Rich holds an ATP, CFII SME, SES, glider licenses, and type ratings in the L29, L39, Citation 500/510s/525s, Eclipse 500S and DA10. His company, Per- sonal Wings, provides training, mentoring and aircraft services. He is also a proud owner of an Eclipse and Cirrus SR22. You can contact Rich at rich@ personalwings.com.
PC-12 recurrent 10 days Rich visits Dr. Viji Sankar and after quarantine. Dr. Vi Bowman in June.
4 • TWIN & TURBINE / July 2020