06/09 - Amy Gesch - One Year Later

06/09 - Amy Gesch - One Year Later

By Amy Gesch

Editor’s Note: Amy Gesch is a very bright and driven individual who has been badly bitten by the flying bug! One year ago Amy’s first exposure to flight appeared in this newsletter. She was in the midst of working on her private pilot license. One year later, she has accomplished quite a lot in spite of limited funds. Her ingenuity and her persistence have helped her accomplish a lot in just one short year. I think you’ll find Amy’s update both interesting and inspirational.

A year ago, I was one giddy recipient of a private pilot’s license. At first, I didn’t know what to do . . . I didn’t feel all that different. Then, I began to explore all that the wide world of aviation has to offer!

I spent last summer in the heat of Texas, interning with an aviation education foundation. I learned more than I can even remember, including how to weld, how to fabric-cover an airplane, how to make a fiberglass mold, how to handle and prime aircraft parts, how to use a lathe and mill, and I also logged a few hours in a Bonanza. I rode along on a cross-country air race and got to shoot some air-to-air photographs of an awesome formation of race planes, too!

At the end of August, I moved to Mankato, Minnesota, to start classes at Minnesota State University-Mankato. I’m double majoring in aviation management and economics. During the academic year at MSU, I joined the university’s Women in Aviation chapter, flight team, aviation club, and helped plan both the aviation banquet and the Women in Aviation chapter’s pilot panel. For my birthday and Christmas, my mom bought me a trip to the Women in Aviation conference in Atlanta, Georgia—where I met a fabulous bunch of people and we got snowed in! Our chapter also toured a top-notch antique aircraft restoration facility. I began working on my multiengine rating in the fall semester but have subsequently put that on pause due to funding.

Over Labor Day weekend, a friend picked me up and we flew to the Antique Airplane Association fly-in. I spent the weekend surrounded by some gorgeous vintage airplanes and ran into an “Oshkosh friend” (the ones you only see at AirVenture), as well as regular friends.

After that, I drove back to Wisconsin to go to the Midwest Antique Aircraft Club fly-in. It was another great weekend with a lot of interesting airplanes. I even ran into people I had just met at the AAA fly-in the previous weekend!

In January, inspired by a conversation I had with my flight instructor over winter break, I started an aviation blog aimed at increasing youth involvement in aviation by (hopefully) inspiring local organizations to reach out to the youth in their area. Some days I’m not sure how best to do that, but I’m trying my best. I was honored to see a short story about the blog, called A Flying Story, published in the June/July issue of Midwest Flyer. (You can find A Flying Story at http://aflyingstory.blogspot.com)

In mid-April, my flight instructor told me to take the airplane out to Mankato . . . so I kidnapped it for three weeks. That Cub and I explored private airports, spun more times than I can recall, braved some tricky winds, made some new friends, and never left the ground with an empty seat! It was a tremendous learning experience that I would recommend to everyone—it will expand your horizons farther than you can imagine and teach you an awful lot about yourself and flying.

Now, I’m working on earning my sport pilot instructor’s license. I’ve passed all the required knowledge tests, have done some of the air work, and have been focusing on the mammoth amount of groundwork required to learn how to teach. By the time you read this, it’s possible that I’ll have taken my checkride already! It really is hard to believe it was only a year ago that I was doing all the same things to prepare for my initial pilot checkride.

It isn’t quite the way I had expected things to work out—I imagined I would have had my multiengine rating before going home for winter break, but that certainly didn’t happen. I didn’t think I would be able to pursue the sport pilot instructor license until next summer, but here I am, studying the oral exam guide to get ready for my checkride!

During these uncertain economic times, I think it’s important to remember that, while things may not turn out quite the way you’ve planned, they will work out in the end. In fact, while my life certainly hasn’t gone according to my plans, I must admit it’s worked out much better than I could have imagined. Like me, you may have to pause part of your flight training due to unexpected circumstances, but it’s not the end of the world. Stay involved! Work on passing your knowledge test, volunteer at an airport open house or pancake breakfast, or join your local EAA chapter!

When I initially had to stop working on my multiengine rating, I was devastated. I was in an aviation program, watching all my friends go flying, while I was stuck on the ground because of something so trivial as money. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling, being trapped by finances, but it’s a hard fact of life. Other things can get in the way of pursuing flying as well, but that doesn’t mean you need to completely set aside aviation, either.

Life definitely doesn’t go as planned, but therein lies the beauty of life. However, don’t let the uncertainties of life get you down—when one door closes, find the next one that opens, and don’t forget what you really want to achieve. I can guarantee you it’s worth all the work, and you can’t even imagine all the amazing places aviation can take you!

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