On Flying Again
On my last morning in Oshkosh, I had the chance to interview Erik Lindbergh, grandson of Charles Lindbergh, as he was preparing for a photo shoot to recreate the famous Crown Oil/Spirit of St. Louis photo.
I asked Mr. Lindbergh what he felt the biggest challenge facing aviation was today. He responded quite broadly, citing the next generation of aviators. The name Lindbergh is synonymous with aviation and inspired generations, including the men who walked on the Moon. Lindbergh’s goal today is education – and not just classroom teaching – he emphasized that you need to find what “lights up kids” to get them engaged. He felt that aviation was a niche, but he has dedicated himself to finding what keeps kids engaged across the spectrum.
“You can’t put a round kid in a square hole,” he said.
He cited his grandfather’s experience in college, which saw the great aviator flunking out of his engineering program at the University of Wisconsin. Could anyone question Charles Lindbergh’s engineering brilliance? I think not.
Sometimes, what’s right for one child isn’t right for another. One size doesn’t fit all. It’s about finding what keeps you engaged. His enthusiasm and passion for both education and aviation came through in his answer.
As I took to the sky again for the first time in almost two years yesterday, Eric Lindbergh’s words resonated with me. I was never known for my academic skill, I always had my head in the clouds learning as much as a could about topics like aviation. I was lucky to find what found
what sparked my interest, and the byproduct is this page.
Twin A380 Diversions
Not that diversions are out of the ordinary, or really even newsworthy, but when 33% of an aircraft type divert in a day, I figured it was worth mentioning. EK’s A6-EDA ended up in Munich for a medical emergency and SIA’s 9V-SKC diverted to Gatwick because of a (false) fire alarm in the LHR tower.
A6-EDA dumping fuel over Europe
Second 777F Airborne
The second test flight 777F flew for the first time in Everett on August 9. N5023Q joins N5020K in the 350 hour summer flight test program. The aircraft is already painted in the colors of its final customer, Air France Cargo. Delivery is expected in October as F-GUOA.
United Gets Trippy
As a frequent and loyal customer to United, I feel slightly entitled to give them a bit of guff, yeah I said guff, about their ads running during the Olympics. I’ve always believed that they’ve pushed the creative bounds of airline advertising, but their latest stuff is visually stunning and vaguely reminiscent of a hallucinogenic experience. I’m not saying that one needs a hallucinogen to enjoy flying United, but if Business and First are getting an orchestral prawn, I need to find myself an upgrade out of Economy.
Another video after the jump.
This post was originally published to the internet between 2007 and 2012. Links, images, and embedded media from that era may no longer function as intended.
This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.