AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - December 2018 - 37

Merrill Field in Anchorage caught my eye:
"Whether you've been out of the cockpit
for family, career, financial, or other reasons, it's never too late to get back behind
the controls!" I'd been out of the cockpit
for all those reasons. Maybe this was the
right place to begin the return. I called
when we arrived in Anchorage and made
an appointment.
Jamie Patterson-Simes, owner and
chief pilot at SkyTrek Alaska, escorted us
upstairs into the training room overlooking
Runway 34. Jamie learned to fly at age 17.
She attended Embry-Riddle Aeronautical
University in Prescott, Arizona, to get
her commercial and flight instructor cer-

and the navigation. You do as much of the flying as you feel comfortable with and we'll see
how it goes." We walked to the airplane and
got in for a planned one-hour flight.
I was just as nervous and excited
after almost four decades away as I was
the first time I strapped into the left seat.
Jamie walked me through the taxi and
engine runup, then reported us ready for
departure. The tower responded: "Cessna
Seven-Three-Four-Quebec-Mike, Runway
34, clear for takeoff."
I looked at Jamie. "It's your airplane,
John. Let's go," she said.
I taxied onto the runway and gave the
engine full throttle. We drifted left. "Right

That first moment of flight-when the wheels leave
the ground-lives with us forever.
tificates. Two years later she bought a
one-way ticket to Alaska. She instructed
in Anchorage, then took a job as a bush
pilot flying hunters and guides from
remote village strips to off-airport landings. Eventually she returned to Anchorage
to raise a family, start SkyTrek Alaska, and
complete her MBA. Now an adjunct faculty member at the University of Alaska
and outspoken advocate for aviation,
Patterson-Simes continues to teach and
mentor others who share her love of flying.
"Let's get you back in the air," she smiled
after we talked a bit. "I'll handle the radios

rudder, John. Keep us centered." The airspeed indicator came to life. Thirty knots,
40.... "More rudder...that's it." Fifty, 55.
"Rotate." I pulled the yoke back, and the
Earth began to fall away. That first moment
of flight-when the wheels leave the
ground-lives with us forever.
We turned northeast and climbed
along the base of the Chugach Mountains.
From the back seat, Sharon snapped photos of the ice fields below Knik Glacier as
Jamie monitored my flying, pointed out
landmarks, and looked for traffic. I concentrated on keeping headings and altitude,

but remembered occasionally to take in
the view. Blue sky and snow-capped mountains, roads, and rivers leading down the
valley and out to the sea.
"Do you want to land it?" Jamie asked
high over Eagle River on the way back.
"Absolutely."
We set up for a straight-in approach
to Runway 25. I flew us to the touchdown
with only a slight bounce on landing and
taxied us to the ramp.
"What did you learn today?" Jamie
asked when we returned to the training
room.
I looked out at the airport and remembered Keith the morning he taught me how
to do a preflight inspection. I remembered
again the magic of that very first moment.
How had I given up something I once
loved so completely? I turned back to her
and grinned. "It's never too late," I said,
"to fall in love all over again."
JOHN CRITES-BORAK has completed his

commercial training and is enrolled in an
intensive CFI curriculum.

Jamie Patterson-Simes is one of
only four National Association of
Flight Instructors Master Flight
Instructors in the state of Alaska. In
2016, AOPA recognized PattersonSimes as one of the top 50 CFIs in
the nation and SkyTrek was named
overall top flight school in 2017 (see
story page 34).

Rusty Pilots now online

AOPA's Rusty Pilots Program, the popular free seminar that has helped thousands of lapsed pilots get back in the
air, is now available to AOPA members as a free online course. The debut of Rusty Pilots Online, brought to you by
PilotWorkshops, gives pilots who have been unable to attend a Rusty Pilots seminar in person the opportunity to join
the more than 23,600 pilots who have participated in more than 700 seminars, and join the ranks of 5,800 pilots who
have gone on to fly with an instructor, complete a flight review, and resume flying as PIC. The Rusty Pilots program
and the other initiatives of You Can Fly, AOPA's multi-pronged initiative to get more pilots flying and keep them flying,
are made possible by generous donations to the AOPA Foundation.
www.aopa.org/rustypilotsonline

www.aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 37

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AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - December 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - December 2018