Patrick Smith admits small planes are unpleasant

There are many sports that are physically uncomfortable. The reward has
to exceed the discomfort. Heck, I fly an open-cockpit airplane on days
below freezing, and I certainly don't have to.....

Ron Wanttaja

Ron Wanttaja writes:

There are many sports that are physically uncomfortable. The reward has
to exceed the discomfort. Heck, I fly an open-cockpit airplane on days
below freezing, and I certainly don't have to.....

So what part of flying that aircraft compensates for sub-freezing
temperatures?

Mxsmanic wrote:
Ron Wanttaja writes:

There are many sports that are physically uncomfortable. The reward has
to exceed the discomfort. Heck, I fly an open-cockpit airplane on days
below freezing, and I certainly don't have to.....

So what part of flying that aircraft compensates for sub-freezing
temperatures?

Well, you have to understand the distinction between flying for fun and
flying for transportation. I fly for fun. I like watching the sky,
sea, and land from the great visibility an open cockpit provides. IMHO,
closed cabins isolate you from truly experiencing what it's like to fly.
They're like eating a gourmet meal with your tongue wrapped in plastic.

Ernie Gann called it, "The Island in the Sky." But open-cockpit pilots
are awash in that ocean of air, not sunning themselves on the beach.

Sure, if I owned an airplane for transportation, it'd be something else.
Closed cabin to minimize the noise and maintain a comfortable
environment, rather than the breeze on my cheek and a silk scarf wrapped
around my neck. GPS-coupled autopilot, rather than a sectional crammed
under one butt cheek. Air bags and BRS to give the passengers the best
chance of survival if things go wrong, rather than a single-seater with
only my neck involved.

In the past thirty years, I've owned closed-cabin planes for three
years...and open-cockpit ones for about twenty.

Ron Wanttaja