My First Flight as a Pilot in the C-130
Aviation is a really funny industry.
For so much of my life so many aspects of the industry have felt completely out of reach. Even after all of the experiences I have had and people I have met, I still feel like there are so many things I will never get to see or experience. The reality is that there are so many experiences I would like to have that there is no way it would be possible for me to experience them all. I have made the mistake of ignoring the cool things I have done because I spend so much time looking ahead to the things I would really like to see and do.
In some ways that is what I did a few weeks ago when I didn’t take the time I should have to enjoy a moment that I waited almost a decade for, and which less than two years ago I would have told you would never happen. Despite my delay I would like to share just how special an experience it was for me.
I have about 1600 hours as a navigator on the C-130H, and I enjoyed every single one of them. To stand on that flight deck in countries all over the world, to airdrop supplies to people who needed them on the ground in Afghanistan, to deliver patients to hospitals where they could get the care they needed, or even to return them home, to dangle my feet off the ramp flying low over the islands of the Pacific and see what has to be the bluest water on earth. All of these experiences were life changing in their own way, and I fully anticipated making more of the same memories over however many years I remained in the Nevada Air National Guard as a navigator.
But then the opportunity arose to attend pilot training and ultimately take the controls of the C-130. As I look back on what it took to even be given that opportunity I am overcome with gratitude for the willingness of leaders to support me, and others, in that pursuit. I am forever indebted to a family that continues to sacrifice every day so that I can chase my dreams. None of it would be possible, nor would it be worth it, if I didn’t have their love and support.
This is the first C-130 that I ever got to fly as a pilot and it was life changing.
After about 21 months of training, I finally got to sit in the pilot’s seat for a flight on the C-130. The first time I got that chance was honestly less than exciting. For various scheduling and training reasons, I only got in the seat for the second half of the flight, and I didn’t actually get to manipulate the controls once. That being said, it was still incredibly memorable for me, and in some ways is still a little surreal that it actually happened.
A few days later I was able to get in the seat for the entire flight that was actually based around pattern work so I got a ton of takeoffs and landings. Some people may be surprised to learn just how much time Air Force pilots spend working in the pattern and doing takeoffs, approaches, and landings. Those are skills that remain important no matter what level of flying you get to.
As I took the runway for that first takeoff at the controls I felt like my whole body was smiling. In a less professional environment I may have squealed like a child with excitement, but I kept all of that inside. Logically, the sights and sounds of that takeoff were not significantly different from any of the thousands of others I had experienced from six feet further back in the plane, but I will tell you that it felt like the first time I had ever experienced it. It is amazing to me just how different it feels in that seat compared to the one I used as a nav.
The rest of the flight was spent working on landings, and the weather was certainly giving me a hearty welcome with a significant crosswind the entire time. (It made future flights seem much easier when the winds were significantly less challenging.) As the flight progressed it was exciting to watch myself get better with each landing. Slowly putting the pieces together of how to apply rudder, aileron, elevator, power, trim, etc. to set that plane down where it was supposed to be. I still have tons to learn, but even in those couple of hours it was exhilarating to see my improvement.
Sunsets from the air are just so much more beautiful for some reason.
I have since had a handful of flights spent mostly on tactical flying, and they have been a lot of fun, but nothing really compares to that first time you take the controls. As I finish up my training here in Little Rock I have so much to be grateful for.
I don’t think I am alone in sometimes feeling that as I approach 40 it is easy to forget about my dreams and feel like the time has passed to chase them. You tend to resign yourself to the life that you have. Don’t get me wrong, I have been really happy with my life. I have a job I love, with an amazing wife and stellar kids. I have had incredible experiences with my work, and my family, and I know that those will continue, but I still have moments where I feel like there are so many things I want to do that I never will.
At times like those I have to remind myself how many dreams I have already successfully achieved, and that if I stop chasing new ones I have only myself to blame. Being realistic, my dream of playing professional baseball has sailed, and that’s okay. I still love the game, but it was probably never realistic anyways. However, other dreams, like getting my tailwheel endorsement, teaching my kids (and maybe wife) to fly, and backcountry flying, are all still very much attainable. They aren’t even that far from my reach if I just make them a priority.
Like so many other dreams, they are not just going to fall into my lap without effort. I will likely have to make sacrifices and not pursue things I would like to do if I am to accomplish the things I really want to do.
When I was a kid living under the approach/departure path to DFW I vividly remember having the dream of becoming a pilot, but I never thought it was a realistic possibility. I had no idea what the path was to get there. When I enlisted in the Marine Corps I thought I had started on that path and would reach my goal in just a few short years. Turns out it was more like 18 years, but dang it, I got there.
I think I have confused my own impatience with something being impossible. It is easy to compare yourself with others and say they just got lucky or they have the right rich parents, and some of that is true, but who cares what someone else’s path was? If you really want something bad enough and continue to focus on it, you can get there, and make it a reality.
It is really fun to be able to say now that I am a C-130 pilot, especially because I never thought it would happen.
