A very personal aviation matter (100-03)

Both of my parents asked me not to buy an airplane. But I did it anyway, just as my father had done, and my brother. Here is a letter from Mom asking me not to buy one.

Click image to enlarge. The words read... Wed, 1/19/94 Dear Tom, I can't seem to find a decent pen. Yesterday Misty was 2 years old, and Daniel was 72. In case you didn't see this in TV Guide about Corvettes, I am inclosing these pages. It was 3 degrees this morning here. What was the temperature there? Arlyn told me there was some kind of airplane collision over Pearland a week or 2 ago. Do you know anything about it. Please stay away from airplanes! (Dont' buy one!) Love, Mom

There is an understanding that I learned after becoming a pilot, that pilots have in common. That the number one objective in any aviation activity is safety. Consider a doctor, who's number one goal (by Hippocratic oath, I understand) is to first do no harm, then second to cure or heal, then third to relieve pain and suffering. If a doctor cannot commit to these simple beliefs, his or her entire principle of vocation or endeavor is bastardized and corrupt. The same kind of thing exists with pilots. An unspoken glue binds them, safety first, which means first the preservation of human life, then second do no harm (to human life) while preserving it, then third to preserve property (both in the air and on the ground), and finally, only after ensuring the first three goals, to preserve ones dignity of performance in operation of an aircraft.

Often I am asked my views on, what if the, "you know" should happen? And this is a very personal and individual matter. Most people fall on one side of the fence or the other, never in the middle. That is, half the people I know say they wouldn't set foot inside a small general aviation aircraft for any amount of money. The others say, if it's their time, well...so be-it.

I publish this, my dogma, or manifesto on the matter here. So if you are weak at heart, or not religious, you should probably not read beyond this point. Know that I carry these same words, hand written on a single sheet of paper, in ink, onboard my aircraft at all times, to be found by would-be rescuers in the un-likely event that... "you know", happens. It is a statement of belief, and a picture of what would have been going through my mind in those few faitful moments of time just before the end of my life.

The words read... 10/24/99 To my friends in Christ: If you read this you should know that I love God so much that I have decided to put it to paper, using my own handwriting. It cannot be taken back. I declare that I am a Christian. I acknowledge that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior, and that only through Him can I meet the Holy Heavenly Father. I ask Jesus my Lord and Savior for His and the Father's forgiveness for all of my sins, including future ones. I state that I forgive all sins against me, and that I want to be in Heaven with the Holy Father. As I fly, in the empty seat next to me or behind me, the Lord Jesus Christ is there, flying with me, giving me the skills I need to pilot this aircraft. And that should my earthly body perish in this flight, I was not alone at that moment because Jesus Christ was beside me, with me, comforting me, giving me strength, and the skill to die. And I am with my Creator at this very instant.

During flight training, day after day, flight hour after flight hour, my instructor occupied the aircraft's right seat. He instructed me acording to the FAA's letter of the law, helped me with tips and tricks, and reassured my confidence. His presense was sort of insurance, that if anything went wrong, I had his experience (thousands of hours of flight time) to rely on to get us out of a sticky situation.

One of my most vivid memories of which I can still see to this very day, is the sight of that empty seat beside me, sooooooo empty, when my instructor finally cut me loose, to fly solo. And again after I passed all the tests (written, medical, oral and practical flight) and became a legal private pilot. Seeing that empty seat, I prayerfully asked Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior, to occupy THAT seat at all times when I fly, instructing me... guiding me... reassurring me... and giving me the skill and steady hand I need to return my aircraft and all its occupants to a safe landing back on earth. If THAT right seat is occupied with a passenger, I've asked Jesus to ride in one of the seats behind me, or anywhere there is room. As He has promised, because I have accepted Him, and asked Him to be with me, then there He has been every since, and there He will continue to be, each time I fly.

This painting by Warner Sallman symbolizes for me God's guidance in my aviation career, as well as my life. While I am the pilot of my airplane, and sometimes am in rough skies, Christ is my pilot, without whom I could never have become a pilot.


Christ our Pilot

"The capacity for sacrifice and service that human beings have for one another knows no bounds." -- Don Piper

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