You Can Fly - 2023 Edition - 4

WELCOME TO OUR WORLD
THE POSSIBILITIES
ARE ENDLESS
If we can do it, so can you
BY ALICIA HERRON
general aviation-my first time at the controls-I knew
I would become a pilot, no matter what. And without
that flight and guidance into GA from someone in
the know, I doubt I would be where I am today, many
certificates, hours, and adventures later.
Every year, we at AOPA make this magazine to
help guide you through the fascinating (and sometimes
intimidating) world of learning to fly. Here
you'll find info on choosing a flight instructor and
flight school, what to expect on your student pilot
journey, and aspirational stories about airplanes you
could fly one day. Will you fly high and fast across the
country to places like Teterboro, New Jersey, and Van
Nuys, California, in a sleek Cirrus SR22? Or will you
choose the low and slow life and hop around the grass
strips of the Idaho backcountry in a Piper Super Cub?
Maybe you'll discover you prefer float flying in the
turquoise waters of the Florida Keys. The choice is
yours, and the possibilities are nearly endless.
Dream on, fly on, and get ready for one of the
M
any dream of flight, but few choose to take the leap. Congratulations for
starting the journey to become a pilot!
When I was in high school, my dentist's office was right under the
departure path for Zamperini Field in Torrance, California. Every six months
I would look out the window during my teeth cleaning and watch airplane
after airplane fly overhead. Eventually I
started to think that if they could do it,
maybe I could do it, too. Between that
and excessively rewatching Indiana
Jones movies, I couldn't get aviation out
of my mind. But with no pilots in my family,
I had many questions and no answers,
and it would be years before I started flying
lessons. Could I even become a pilot as
a civilian? How much would lessons cost?
And would I have to buy an airplane? How
much does an airplane cost? Is ground
school an actual scheduled class I have to
take? Will I feel like a bird?
Thankfully, my mom's friend, who
had a Beechcraft Baron at the time,
heard I wanted to become a pilot.
For my nineteenth birthday, he and his
wife gifted me an introductory flight.
After that short half-hour introduction to
4 FLIGHT TRAINING YOU CAN FLY 2023
best experiences of your life! Every pilot started right
where you are now: with zero hours in our logbook
but a wish to learn to fly. If we can do it, so can you.
Good luck, fly safe, and enjoy the journey.
alicia.herron@aopa.org
AVIATION PIONEERS
KATHERINE SUI FUN CHEUNG
" There's no feeling like it in the world.
Being up in the air, the wind blowing,
the exhilaration, that's my definition of
joy. It's complete freedom. "
-Cheung learned to fly in Los Angeles in 1932 and
became a stunt pilot, barnstormer, and air racer. Her
many honors include induction into the Women in
Aviation Hall of Fame.
You Can Fly - 2023 Edition

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of You Can Fly - 2023 Edition
