Growth in soaring

I would like to put another perspective, with great respect to the excellent previos posts.
Flying is not so alluring these days.
I soloed 20 odd years back, at that time "flying" was only just really becoming a viable option of travelling about ones country or world, in jet aircraft. Prior to that, in the times of aviation heroes, flying (anything) was relegated to dreams and the wealthy.

Now it is cheap and easy, book over the web, $50 and your in the air! People perceive this as flight!

Now there are very few flying heroes, the days of a sea of humanity around a homecoming trans-atlantic pioneer, barnstormer or fighter pilot have well past.
Decades past between the records, when they break it is 3rd page news, as we have seen with Branson, Fossett and Ohlmann quite recently.

This discussion usually ends with

1 money
2 time
3 we do get people into the sport, we just dont retain them.

These are possibly true but I also beleive flight is not as "gee whiz" as it was when most of us took it up.

The upside is most people who do fly think that flight is limited to looking out from a pea-sized porthole, endless security and being served small drinks. The reality is far more exciting for the senses, as we know, and we need to grab that knowledge and show newcomers. Freedom can still be had in aviation!

When younger I was, I found the money and I found the time to do whatever I was hooked on and I imagine so will the youth of today, the trick is to get them hooked and to KEEP them hooked.
Danger is never a consideration to a 15 - 25 year old, sometimes even a drawcard.

I have rambled, its late!

bagger

bagmaker wrote:
These are possibly true but I also beleive flight is not as "gee whiz"
as it was when most of us took it up.

The upside is most people who do fly think that flight is limited to
looking out from a pea-sized porthole, endless security and being
served small drinks.

Are you sure you didn't mean the downside?

To me riding in a jetliner with the tiny porthole and the drinkies is
indistinguishable from traveling in a luxury coach or a train (though
these have bigger windows and fewer hostesses) and is about as exciting.

Possibly our biggest problem is to get a potential pilot into a glider
in the first place so they become aware of the difference between what
we do and the airline experience.


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martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
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