I have always enjoyed giving introductory lessons in my daily work as a flight instructor. Meeting new people who bring new reactions to flight is a great aspect of being an instructor. Sometimes, the person who shows up for the lesson has other ideas of how things should go. I remember one older man who had just such an alternate flight plan in mind.

After de-briefing a primary student, I walked to the check-in desk to greet my next” student”. Two men were waiting for me. The younger of the two introduced me to his father, a quiet, serious man of about 75 years. His son explained that his father had flown B 17s in World War II but had not flown since 1946. His birthday was that week and this flight was a gift so he could re-experience his flying days. I explained that although the Cessna R was a different airplane, I was certain that he would enjoy the flight.