Background

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My love for airplanes was seeded by my father in my early childhood. From playing with toy planes, to getting the oportunity to climb into old cropdusters, to watching the Blue Angles roar overhead, I was a die-hard fan since the age of five. My path to obtaining my private certificate began with Microsoft Flight Simulator and learning to fly a Cessna with only a mouse and keyboard, doing laps around Chicago's Meigs Field. I soon added CH Products Yoke and Rudder Pedals and started expanding my homebuilt simulator and teaching myself about the ins-and-outs of flying. Flight simulation is still a major part of my flight experience and I use it often to practice the basics.

I took my first real flight lesson on my 16th birthday (thanks to one of the best birthday presents a parent can give) at the local Harford County Airport (0W3). I got serious and really started to build my hours after completing my undergrad. For the majority of my training I flew with the Patuxent River Navy Flying Club, which was a very different experience than operating from the small airports I was accustomed too. After about 6 months of flying I finally took and passed my checkride at Easton Airport (KESN) in the winter of 2007. I was finally a private pilot!

This section briefly describes the aircraft I have gotten checked out in, random flying adventures, and what I plan next.