I haven't flown as much as I'd like to since earning my PPL a few years back, largely due to financial restrictions (it's not a cheap hobby, flying, especially in Toronto!), but recently an old friend was bringing his new beau into town, and wanted us to take them flying.
Someone else footing the bill is the kind of flight that works for me, so off we went for a local east and city tour.
The beau, it turned out, wanted a chance to try his hands at the controls, so he rode left seat while Tats played PIC, and I squished into the back seat of the old 172 we had rented, along with our friend.
Although I enjoy flying, it is also nice to just sit back and enjoy the flight, especially when one hasn't flown in a while. Flying hands off the controls also afforded me a rare opportunity to take some actual photos while flying, rather than having to focus on maneuvering the plane.
Someone else footing the bill is the kind of flight that works for me, so off we went for a local east and city tour.
The beau, it turned out, wanted a chance to try his hands at the controls, so he rode left seat while Tats played PIC, and I squished into the back seat of the old 172 we had rented, along with our friend.
Although I enjoy flying, it is also nice to just sit back and enjoy the flight, especially when one hasn't flown in a while. Flying hands off the controls also afforded me a rare opportunity to take some actual photos while flying, rather than having to focus on maneuvering the plane.
pre-flight walk-around in front of hangar 4
One of the many things I love about flying out of CYTZ is that the airport is shared with mid-size commercial operations. Seeing Porter's Dash 8s up close is always exciting, and this time I got to photograph an aircraft taxiing pretty much right in beside us as it came of Taxiway Foxtrot after landing on Runway 26, the same runway we were preparing to take off from....
As we completed our pre take-off checks and approached the hold short line for 26, another Cessna was just coming in for a landing. Again, having no flight responsibilities myself this flight allowed me to snag a rare close-up from my perch in the back seat of our own aircraft, of the company traffic on short, short final, just before that aircraft's flare!
Soon we ourselves were on the roll, and our new pilot-in-training (under the guidance and watchful eye of our PIC) did the take-off while that familiar feeling of "wow, I'm actually flying" hit me.
As we turned crosswind, I pointed out the naked beach (which -- with the sudden arrival of the crisp fall weather -- was itself now naked), and then we turned downwind to enjoy a breathtaking view of the fall foliage on the island, with the spectacular Toronto skyline as its backdrop.
As we turned crosswind, I pointed out the naked beach (which -- with the sudden arrival of the crisp fall weather -- was itself now naked), and then we turned downwind to enjoy a breathtaking view of the fall foliage on the island, with the spectacular Toronto skyline as its backdrop.
As the boys wanted to fly out to the east end of the city a little and enjoy the areal view of the Bluffs and Frenchmens' Bay, we did that, and then returned for a touristy but-it-never-gets-tired city tour, circling the tower while the passengers snapped photo after photo from our vantage point in the sky.
An interesting thing that happened was when we opened the window so our friends' beau -- who had with him a very professional looking camera -- could take some photos without the glare... I stuck my iPhone out the window, too (holding on tight!!) and snapped a few shots. The wind, however, distorted things a little, and all my "outside shots" ended up with the wonky-looking sort of effect below, on the right!
 through the window |  no window |
It had been several months since I had seen the city from on high, and I really enjoyed our flight, even from (or perhaps especially from) the back seat.
Despite a slightly heavy load (with the exception of Tats, we were all pretty "bulky" people, and Tats had insisted on a 1/2 tank fuel restriction!), we made it back onto the runway in one piece. Back on the apron, we took the obligatory "we did it" group snapshot in front of our plane, then headed out to Queen West for dinner at the Beaver.
Despite a slightly heavy load (with the exception of Tats, we were all pretty "bulky" people, and Tats had insisted on a 1/2 tank fuel restriction!), we made it back onto the runway in one piece. Back on the apron, we took the obligatory "we did it" group snapshot in front of our plane, then headed out to Queen West for dinner at the Beaver.
P.S. About the election, I will say that I played Clinton's concession speech for my kids, because I want them to see what taking the high road looks like, even in the face of such a devastating loss. We had an excellent, mostly child-driven conversation about inclusion vs. exclusion, misogyny, fear, love, Trudeau and the importance of being an ally, especially during challenging times like these, and I highly recommend facilitating a conversation like this -- if you haven't already -- with the children in your life!
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