The True Spirit of Flight

I’m penning this from the again seat of Boomerang Air’s Carbon Cub FX-3 as we cruise at 7,800 ft above a stupendous damaged layer of soppy, white clouds en path to the 52nd annual Sun ’n Fun Aerospace Expo in Lakeland, Florida.

We departed from Hank Sasser/Breakaway Airport (40XS) on Monday morning after a weather-delayed begin, staying beneath a 2,000-foot ceiling throughout Texas till situations lastly lifted close to the Louisiana border.

With our first gas cease behind us and about an hour to go till the subsequent, I’ve had a while to replicate on one thing that’s been weighing closely on my coronary heart.

Sun ’n Fun is at all times a large household reunion—stuffed with work, interviews, and reconnecting with pals throughout the aviation business. But this yr feels totally different. I’ll be lacking somebody I used to be actually trying ahead to seeing.

Last week, I obtained a message nobody ever needs to get: A detailed buddy was concerned in an plane accident in North Carolina. In an business the place many people have already skilled tragedies far too early, it’s a well-recognized however never-easy feeling. There’s the uncertainty, the ready, and the helplessness as somebody you care about faces a tough state of affairs.

While this group continues to point out its unbelievable help, elevating almost $30,000 for the pilot in simply two days, I’ve additionally been struck by the opposite facet of it. The hypothesis. The assumptions. The dissecting of an accident by individuals who weren’t there, talking with certainty about particulars solely these concerned might really perceive.

In moments like these, when households and pals are hurting and lives could also be without end modified, this isn’t the time to assign blame, level fingers, or make assumptions—particularly about deeply private issues.

At the tip of the day, we’re all human, introduced collectively by a shared love of flight—not divided by hypothesis.

As we head into this week of aviation celebration (April 14-19) within the Sunshine State, I encourage all of us to guide with empathy, endurance, and perspective. Support each other, raise one another up, and bear in mind why we fell in love with flying within the first place. That spirit—greater than something—is what retains this group sturdy.

If you’re heading to the present, I hope you’ll come discover me on the Firecrown Media setup (Hangar A, sales space 41) and say hiya. I at all times love placing faces to names and listening to your tales.

However you’re getting there, take your time, make good selections, and fly safely. The present will probably be there if you arrive, so what issues most is that you just do, too.