AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2011 - 22

LETTERS
Epic Flights: 88 magical aerial miles Articles like Dave Hirschman’s “Epic Flight: 88 Magical Aerial Miles” (August 2011 AOPA Pilot) kept me dreaming of the day I would become a pilot and experience the magic of flying. I was born in a simple but lovely family in Brazil, and it was hard to see how I would make my dream come true. I got a place in a public (and free) university in Brazil and through there I had the chance to get closer to this wonderful world of aviation and had great opportunities such as help-

ing to build the airplane that got some world records recently. I finally had the chance to live moments like the ones Hirschman described when I flew a Cessna 172 from Seattle to Oshkosh and back with my friend after having our certificates for a few months. And now with the help of an amazing family (that I met while working in a ski resort close to Seattle during my summer vacations) and some sponsors, I’m preparing to fly to Alaska and then all the way to Brazil in this same airplane. It will take more than 110 hours and more than a month of traveling. I have a blog

(www.gustywings.com), but it’s still in Portuguese (Google translator doesn’t work quite well) with plans to be written in English as well, and an album (http:// picasaweb.google.com/gucanti). It would be an honor to have members visit there. Gustavo Junqueira, AOPA 6925492 Sammamish, Washington Having flown our Cessna 182 from Fort Collins, Colorado, to Scottsdale and Chandler, Arizona, many times, my wife and I have flown over the section of the Colorado River Dave Hirschman discusses in his article. We have often followed the Colorado River from about Gypsum to beyond the Grand Canyon National Park (in the days when flight over the Grand Canyon was less restrictive), even flying below the rim at times (not necessarily a wise option). Sometimes, however, trying to follow the river can be difficult or even dangerous. On one January flight from Scottsdale to Fort Collins, when the weather was forecast to be clear, we ran into snowstorms in Utah. We tried to follow the river, but with snow on the ground and in the air, it became impossible. Although instrument rated and current, we were on a VFR flight plan. We had to climb in the clouds (we knew where the mountains were) and shortly flew into the clear. Even when we got to Grand Junction, we had a difficult time finding the airport because of the lack of contrast on the ground. There were clouds ahead, so we stopped in Grand Junction until the clouds cleared. Thanks for the great article. Les Fraley, AOPA 649324 Fort Collins, Colorado As a writer and former copy editor I am most pleased at Dave Hirschman’s excellent writing for AOPA Pilot. I noted even more so that sentiment I have about him upon reading the first paragraph in his beautiful article “88 Magical Aerial Miles.” Wow. I was at the Long Beach, California, airport admiring the Wacos there during AOPA Summit 2010, and, that Waco in particular, I now understand was one of those present. One of those I was desiring, well, really drooling over, at the vision of experiencing the pleasure of owning it. Hirschman’s article was indeed exceedingly well done, as most of his always are, and I thank him for that. Much of AOPA Pilot has in the past been uninteresting for me, but that observation is rapidly changing; apparently
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22 •

OCTOBER 2011

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AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2011