Physically, flying is a delicate act, all finesse and fingertips.
Well if you met me for more than 5 minutes, “delicate” isn’t exactly the
adjective that would immediately spring to mind. I’m more your “person-who-knows-exactly-where-to-thump-the-photocopier-to-get-it-to-work”
kinda gal.
I’m clumsy, uncoordinated and capable of putting my foot in it both
literally and metaphorically. Seriously sometimes I feel that teaching me to
fly is like trying to shove a baby elephant into the passenger seat of a car.
Technically possible but not comfortable for anyone involved.
I guess the flips side of that is that I’m not a precious little
flower who turns her nose up at the smell of aviation fuel and doesn’t mind
getting her pretty little hands dirty when checking the oil.
I just wish my legs reached the peddles and I could see over the
instrument panel
* Quite an achievement seeing as the grades went from A to E !
I'm the opposite. In imperial terms I am 6'2 and 244 lbs, and there is a lot of me to fit into the cockpit.
ReplyDeleteAdvantages:
I can see over the instrument panel pretty much all the time, even when doing things like flapless landings.
My arms are long enough to reach the fuel release valve and hold the fuel container under the cowling at the same time when testing fuel (wait till you fly an older 172 and you'll find out what I mean)
I can polish the windscreen without a ladder and my arms reach the entire surface.
Disadvantages:
Some aircraft's seat belts only just adjust far enough for me to clip myself in.
My left foot likes to go numb after about 10 minutes of being jammed against the fuselage wall.
Headroom is often an issue (not so much in the Pa28 but definitely in the P2008).
Aircraft seats are not particularly ergonomic and my back suffers as a result.
We all go through our own little battles to get airborne, but it is worth it in the end.
Sure, we all have our issues and I'll admit that legroom is never an issue for me evrn on cheapo airlines !
DeleteIt's more than leg length though. I'm not dainty or delicate. My instrcutor makes that plane dance with just the slightest touch of his fingertips. I wrestle it from one impending disaster to the next!