It never gets old

The feeling when you line upon the runway, apply full power and go flying. Get the amount of back pressure on the control column just right and you don’t need to do anything. At the correct speed she just parts company with the runway. Otherwise all it takes is the gentlest of nudges and you’re airborne.

It is a beautiful moment as you seem to defy the law of gravity and power into the air. Planes want to fly and that enthusiasm for being airborne seems to get transmitted directly to the pilot via the control column.

Takeoff is an awe inspiring moment, despite my knowledge of physics and flight mechanics and everything else, it never ceases to amaze me that this lumbering beast on the ground leaps into the air and becomes a thing of beauty to control.