“The control of fear is a necessary part of the inner work of flight.” William Langewiesche Breathe. Relax. Do the ‘what-if’ work ahead of time. All these are part of the Inner Work of Flight. Quote is from Langewiesche’s 2010 book Aloft: Thoughts on the Experience of Flight. And yes, his Dad wrote Stick and Rudder.
The siren birds look cool, flying around free in the sky. Odysseus is the hero we hear about tied to the mast, getting to listen to their siren song. But better to be the oarsmen. Heads down, doing the work, no distractions. Sometimes we have to ignore the sights and sounds out the window, or in our head, and just row! The vase is an Attic red-figure stamnos from Vulci c. 480-450 BCE depicting the myth of Odysseus tied to his ship’s mast in order to resist the enchanting song of the Sirens. It’s in the British Museum collection. The … Continue reading Just row
Beginners Mind met Perpetual Pursuit! Always learning. Sometimes embarrassingly large amounts of stuff I was blind about!
“The drama of flight does not take place between the pilot and the environment, but between the airplane and the pilot, and between the pilot and himself.” David Mamet, Flying magazine Feb 2019. For the first time in years I’m excited for Flying magazine! Mamet has a Pulitzer Prize, Tony nominations, a parody Twitter account, flies his own plane. And now is a columnist for Flying. In his first column he argues that the best aviation writing is found not in books, but in magazines. Writing by pilots for pilots. I think he may be right. My garage has boxes of … Continue reading The drama of flight …
“I was never satisfied with simply doing well. Even after getting a good result in a test or a flight, if I’d made a mistake I would want to fix that mistake and ensure I got it perfect for the next time. Back in our quarters I would run my own debrief. I’d go through a flight over and over, thinking through what I should’ve done and reinforcing in my mind what I would do in the future. I was very big into visualising — replaying a sight picture over and over the way it should unfold — and inevitably … Continue reading I can’t get no
