Pilot Life: Taking My Friend, Dallin Flying!

Long day today! And I flew twice in one day again too! After getting checked out in the Piper Cherokee by my instructor this morning, I ended up waiting around the flight school because the Katana I wanted to take a friend flying became available so I reserved it. I called up my friend, Dallin and he was available so he ended up driving down to meet me in Spanish Fork so I could finally take him flying. While I was waiting, I did the pre-flight and towed the plane over the self-serve fuel pumps and added a little fuel, keeping in mind the weight limits I calculated for this flight (my passenger is heavier than me AND the there's only one Katana that can take both of us based on weight and balance calculations!).

The Katana my friend and I flew was N802CT.
(Of the three DA-20s at Platinum Aviation, this is the only Katana that I could use given the total weight between and my passenger without having to give up so  much fuel or going out of balance!)

After getting all the pre-flight stuff done, I waited for my friend to arrive. Once he did, I got him on board the Katana and quickly gave him a passenger briefing. I then hopped in and got settled in. I got the engine started (no problem, unlike the Cherokee this morning!) and taxied a short distance to do the run-ups. Engine gauges were in the green, so I taxied us to the runway and we got airborne! I turned the ever-reliable Katana to south for a little maneuvering and sight-seeing. I never get sick of doing the same things because I get to experience the joy of taking up friends in a small airplane! We flew around the Payson and Salem Hills area and as was customary, a little sight-seeing over the Payson LDS Temple.

After maneuvering around for a little bit, I decided to take us into Provo, where I would get to demonstrate to my buddy in the right seat what it's like flying into a airport with a control tower. As always, I picked up weather via the ATIS frequency, and then called the tower and received instruction. I entered the pattern and made my touch-and-go landings on Runway 13; I told tower that I wanted to do three of them before we would head back to Spanish Fork. After doing my third touch-and-go in Provo, I was cleared for a straight-out departure and cut loose by tower. So it was back to the CTAF frequency. Once again, I entered into the Spanish Fork pattern by making my approach midfield over the airport and swung back around to enter the left downwind for Runway 30. I performed an additional three laps around the pattern, doing one touch-and-go and one stop-and-go landing followed by a short-field takeoff. And of course, I ended the flight with a full-stop landing, where we vacated off the runway, as I taxied the plane back to the Platinum Aviation hangar and shut the engine down.

Obligatory selfie after we got back!
(Photo credit: Dallin Vance, my passenger for today! Thanks again Dallin for flying with me!)

Once again, I exercised my hard-earned privileges as a private pilot by taking a good friend of mine flying. This will likely be my final flight of year in Utah as I will be returning home to Oregon for the holidays in a few days. But I certainly hope for many more great flying adventures and milestones in the New Year when I return for another semester of school! 

So far, I've had the privilege as a private pilot in taking up six people dear to me as my passengers. And I intend on taking more of my friends and family flying when opportunity permits! After all, we pilots have an unwritten rule/obligation to introduce new people to the world of General Aviation! Flying from my point of view is a fun lifestyle, but it's even greater when I've got good people to share it with. And I would be remiss if I didn't express gratitude to the people I've been able to share my lifestyle with. Their love, support, and interest inspires and motivates me to continue in my growing endeavors and to become an even better pilot!