Who among us had/has a parent who flew/flies?

I just earned my PP-ASEL on Aug 27, about 17-18 years after my first
lesson. My Dad has been a pilot since before I was born (in 1973) and
has been a CFI/CFII for both ASEL and AMEL for as long as I can
remember. In the mid-to-late 80's (87 or so), he taught my Mom how to
fly in 31 days. I know this because another instructor in the flying
club I recently joined remembers my mom for that very reason. In '88, I
began taking lessons from my Dad until some idiot (no idea who) ran the
tanks of my training plane dry over Idaho. That stopped training for me
and never resumed until this year when I found some money and time and
the support of an amazing person who is not interested in flying...my
wife. 1 year ago, I took a ground school class at a local community
college (also my employer and started shopping around for an
instructor and a plane.

Within a few years of teaching my Mom how to fly, my parents divorced
and money/time became limiting factors for flying for all of us. My mom
has not flown in many, many years and has no intent of doing so again.
She has about 95 hours TT. My Dad also quit instructing and only has
flown a handful of times since then. He lost his medical a couple years
ago after having a quintuple-bypass (no heart attack or damage!) but got
it back on a yearly basis. This year, he got it back and, with some
financial assistance from me, got back up-to-speed for flying safely and
insured to instruct. The same club my Mom was in, I joined and they
(again) let my Dad teach in their airplane.

In short, my entire immediate family flies (excluding wife/kids). My
wife was my first pax and I'm still negotiating taking our 1 year-old
flying with her. I *LOVE* flying and wish my wife shared the same
passion and enthusiasm, even a little. Maybe in time, but for now,
she's a nervous mommy who is concerned about what will happen to Alex if
we crashed, especially if he was parentless.

Anyhow, I can't wait to introduce my son to flying. I remember my Dad
flying with another pilot many years ago in a Piper Seneca II and they
were practicing engine-out procedures. I was white-knuckled holding on
for dear life to the seat because I *knew* we were going to crash. I
laugh about it now. I also remember my Dad ferrying the plane to the
Tri-Cities area of Washington State and how much fun it was when I got
to take the controls for a while.

I know my Dad is extremely proud of me. I've got the t-shirt and the
logbook to prove it. Also, he was glad I poked, prodded, pushed, and
shoved his ass back into the cockpit to fly again. Not many people can
say their Dad taught them how to fly. Even fewer can say that their Dad
taught them AND their Mom how to fly. I plan to eventually get my CFI
ticket to teach my son how to fly. He already likes playing in the
airplane.

Happy Landings, all!

Chris G.
PP-ASEL, 8/27/05


john smith wrote:
Just curious how much "trickle-down" aviation there is among us?

My father flew, that is how I got started. We never owned a plane of our
own, only rented. I got my first plane ride when I was three.
He was my first passenger upon passing my PPC checkride and J3 checkout.
I got to fly him to Oshkosh for his first trip there.