His First Solo Flight

Updated 26 Oct 09: Read the real thing here.

After 10 hours of flying, Arif did his first solo flight in a Piper late yesterday's afternoon.

I am still wondering about the thought of him flying solo without the benefit of a captain/instructor. I mean I worry about him driving that small car going back and forth Melaka. I would not have given anyone permission to drive my car, not even my beat up Ford after only 10 hours of driving lesson.

So I complaint to my uncle Captain Asgar and two of my cousin pilots about Arif doing his first solo flight this week, and they didn't bat their eye lids - I was on the way back from Melaka for a meeting when I dropped by at their house in Seremban 2. "Different," he said, "up in the air you are all alone whereas down here the traffic can be intimidating."

His son Afzal - he completed his cadetship 2 months ago, concurs. "Once you are up there doing your solo, you would be screaming and releasing all within you," he opines.

"Bebas! Bebas!" he would screamed on top of his lung during his first solo flight.

(If I were him, that would be the last thing I would be thinking of doing. I would be planning and worrying on how I could get the plane on the tarmac as soon as possible! And that's one reason my friends, I am not a pilot.)

So Arif completed his first solo in 15 mins late yesterday, and he was back on the tarmac at 6.45 pm. He was just circling down the airport. When I complained about the short flight, he said, "It's OK. All you would remember is your first solo flight and nothing else."

Here back on earth, I am battling the KL traffic and grinding my way (and teeth obviously) on a daily basis [sigh].

EPILOGUE

Obviously there isn't any pic of him in his solo flight. Otherwise this would not be called solo flight, eh? There would be no one to take pics, but he should have just hang the camera somewhere and let it take pics automatically.