Qualified Aviator to Novice Writer

So I guess the next thing that I should address is why am I writing this blog?

One of the things that drives me is the belief that with enough energy and enthusiasm I can do anything.  I think that is definitely something that is a common attribute amongst pilots.  We are goal oriented individuals.  We set a goal and then work out the series of steps needed to achieve it.  This can work against us in some cases, such as get-there-itis, but I’ll explore that in another post as this one isn’t about pressing on in inappropriate or poor circumstances.

During my life I’ve set and achieved lots of goals. I’ve also come close and missed some, that sub 90 minute half marathon eluded me by 25 seconds back in 2013.  It doesn’t mean that I can’t do it though, its just that currently I am not motivated enough to train to the required standard and complete the necessary steps. It might also mean that I don’t know what the steps are I suppose, but again, that’s one for a different post.

So I’ve decided I want to write.

I have a lot of passion for flying and aviation in general.  I described some of that in my first post, which focused mainly on my childhood devotion to all things aeronautical.  I’ve not got a huge flying CV yet, having only qualified just under two years ago. And I want to make this blog and my other writing accessible to anyone, even if you have little or no knowledge of aviation.  So in some of my articles I may well explain, in basic terms, some aviation terminology or procedures.  Those of you that fly, feel free to either:

1 – Skip that bit or

2 – Correct me if you think I have described something inaccurately, I am always happy to learn

My friend, Sarah Northwood is a big part of my inspiration to write.  She started writing following a previous career as a scientist.  Her work is varied and interesting as she writes an eclectic mix of children’s poems through romance novels to her newly released horror novel, ‘The Volunteer’, which is now available to buy on Amazon.  She has shown me that it is not an impossible dream to become a writer.

I’ve also had some encouragement and help from Karlene Petitt who is both an airline pilot, motivational speaker and successful author.  I asked Karlene, a complete stranger to me, for help and advice on writing a few weeks ago and she was willing to give it to me.  She has written several compelling novels based around a set of characters who work in the airline industry. She has also penned a motivational book ‘Flight to Success’, which is on my reading list.

My first writing project (apart from this blog) is a collection of short stories that I’m writing based on things that have occurred during some of my flying “adventures”.  Not that I’ve had any real adventures yet. Certainly nothing compared to some of my fellow aviators whose works I have read. I suppose my current aim is to convey to you, the reader, that I’m an ordinary bloke, from an ordinary family, who had a desire to fly.  And that some of the relatively ordinary things that happen when you are in the air can be quite funny when viewed from a certain point of view. I hope I can bring you that point of view and that in doing so both inform and amuse you.

My inspiration for this type of writing comes from another ordinary bloke who goes on adventures, his name is Mark Horrell.  He writes about his trips and expeditions to the mountains and hill walking, which he does as a hobby whilst retaining his ‘ordinary’ job.  It’s a refreshing change from the disaster stories that you usually read if you pick up almost any other book with the word ‘Everest’ in the title. He’s shown me that even quite ordinary stories can be interesting and amusing, and most importantly fun to read, providing that they are written well. And that last bit is the real trick isn’t it?

Having researched the genre pretty extensively and read an awful lot of the books available online that cover light aviation, most of them are simply books about “learning to fly” or in the case of professional pilots, autobiographical memoirs.  Whilst I’ve really enjoyed some of them, as I’m an aviation geek at heart, I’ve found that these can be quite technical and diary like and aren’t really what I’m aiming for.

The books that have really stood out in my mind are a couple that are more honest, amusing anecdotes than technical flying books.  These books are written in a style that I think non-flyers would buy into more and find interesting to read.  So it’s not necessary to have a detailed understanding of the Coriolis Effect or Bernoulli’s principle in order to enjoy the story. By the way, so far, I have not met anyone who can succinctly and simply describe the Coriolis Effect.  One of my instructors came the closest but I still don’t quite get it.  In a nutshell though, it’s the reason why we have wind and, by extension, weather patterns.

Pilots, on your marks, get set and…… Start typing those email corrections!

Anyway a couple of books have stood out for me in particular.  These are Decision Height by Jon Hilton and Propellerhead by Antony Woodward.  These books are more open and amusing to read, they are the kind of story that a lot of people can relate to as they involve the human emotions and thoughts that we all experience every day when trying something new or maybe even dangerous. They are well worth a read and I may well do book reviews of both of them at some point on this site.

Now whilst I don’t have a transatlantic crossing (like Jon) or a really good crash (a la Antony) to spin you a yarn about.  I’m hoping that I can amuse you with some of the aviation related stories that I have from my life, and also hopefully let you see into the mind of a fairly new private pilot.

In the two years since I qualified I’ve had some interesting experiences including a bird strike right through my propeller on final approach, getting lost sandwiched between the Manchester control zone and an active RAF base, landing back at Barton Airfield a few minutes prior to the Vulcan flypast on its farewell tour plus quite a few more.

Overflying Barton just before landing for the Vulcan flypast

I’ve visited some lovely airfields, and flown over some amazing scenery, taken friends and family into the skies, some for the first time and yet I am still aware that I am very much a novice at flying. I frequently fly simply to practise skills such as ‘emergency’ landings (in flying we call these PFLs or Practice Forced Landings), equipment failure, stall recovery, circuit procedure etc. This is a practice that I intend to continue as long as I am flying.

I will be writing mainly about aviation in general on this blog with an emphasis on the world of a private pilot.  I’ll also probably write about some of the more interesting aviation news stories that appear in the public domain. You know the sort of stories that are about perfectly ordinary aviation procedures usually headlined along the lines of “Terror in the Skies” by the likes of The Daily Mail. Occasionally features written by guest writers may well find their way onto my site as well as of course keeping you up to date with my other writing activities.

Of course if there is anything you would like to read or learn about, or if you have any questions or observations then please send them in using the contact form found elsewhere on this site. Or feel free to comment directly below this post so that other readers may benefit from your insight.

Copyright © 2016 Dan Roach