Up in the Air: An Issue of Privilege

Learning about the basic physics and controls of flying an airplane was very interesting, especially because I had equated flying with driving a car, which only operates on a 2-axis field. Throughout our last few weeks of learning about the history of flight, beginning with Kitty Hawk and through the solo flight of Lindbergh, I've noticed a large trend that also fully extends into space travel as well. In order to go UP, you have to overcome many barriers to entry, such as capital wealth, (dis)ability, and race.

This began even in the 1950s, with print advertisements showing the luxury of flying abroad. In all of these ads, the individuals are white, able-bodied, middle class heterosexual couples or families enjoying the experience of flying.



This ad below even plays on the idea of "up" and how the airline is growing up with the family. In the ad below, a new "family fare" promotion lets the man pay full fare and lets the wife and children go for half price.

During class, I was intrigued to learn of the ways in which people travel independently when they hold their own pilot's license. Cross country travel is a privilege that not many possess, but acknowledging the historic barriers of class, race, and disability into the discussion of flight is central to understanding where the future of "up" goes. 

https://www.inverse.com/article/6301-seeing-earth-from-space-will-force-rich-space-tourists-to-save-the-planet

Flight

Having Mr. David Werntz come into class and talk with us about getting a pilot's license was truly a treat. Several things stood out to me during his lecture, but the experience overall was quite enlightening as well. David brought up many aspects of flying and pilot's license prep that had never even crossed my mind, and seeing the flight journal first-hand was a great insight into the whole process.

One of the things brought up by Mr. Werntz was the fact that when an airplane engine fails, it essentially just turns into a glider. This fact seems very logical, and yet I hadn't ever made that connection until his lecture. He also mentioned how if a helicopter's engine fails, it more or less just falls like a brick, and it is very difficult to safely control and land. I happened to come across a video from one of my favorite YouTubers yesterday, saying sort of the opposite. It's a bit long, but it is a fantastic watch if you have the time. Mr. Werntz was for the most part right, but given that he sticks strickly to flying planes and not helicopters, I don't fault him for not knowing this:

Another thing that stood out to me was the massive quantity of rules and regulations for flying from the FAA. Unfortunately, the reason it caught my attention was not a particularly great one. Getting a pilot's license has always been a bit of a pipe dream of mine, and I was so excited when I heard that we (through this class) would get an opportunity to possibly go to the airfield and do our first in-air lesson. But after hearing about some of the requirements from the FAA, it turns out that I am actually not allowed to fly any aircraft due to health reasons. Needless to say, that was a pretty big disappointment, but oh well. The information was interesting to me all the same.



Lastly, one big thing that caught my attention wasn't even something addressed by our guest. I was going to ask a question about it, but unfortunately we ran out of time. As we looked into the mechanics and design of single-engine aircrafts, I realized that, from a mechanical engineering standpoint, the structure of these planes haven't really changed at all in the past 50+ years. The same mechanisms are used, the same aerodynamic principles are utilized, even the general design of airplanes hasn't changed all that much. This was surprising to me for a number of reasons, especially considering all of the challenges and difficulties that arise when flying aircrafts. One would think that in more than half a decade, we as a species would come up with some sort of technological advancement to make flying easier. But for the most part, we just stuck to the same old stuff. Sure, some materials or guidance instruments may have changed, but as far as how single-engine planes actually work, we are living in the 1940s.



Cars, though also relatively the same, are making huge advancements technologically. Energy efficiency is incredible, and the rise of fully electric and even self-driving cars is quickly becoming apparent. And meanwhile, nearly every other area of technology has progressed as well. But planes? I suppose if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

My Flight Story

My flight story.

At one point in my life, I thought that I was going to be an aerospace engineer.  I wanted to work for Boeing and build the airplanes of the future.  In high school, I enrolled in an aerospace engineering class where we learned the fundamentals of flight, designed our own gliders, and practiced flying and navigating on simulators.  I enjoyed the class, but as time progressed, I found myself losing interest in working in a field that is so math heavy.  I abandoned my dreams of being an engineer, but I held on to my fascination with flight.

I am on the left side of this photo; on crutches. My classmates and I are tracking a rocket that one of us had designed and launched.  We designed the rockets with a piece of software that rates the stability of rocket designs.  Although mine succeeded in the simulation, it had the worst real flight of any in the class. (Photo from Wauwatosa Now) 

Until I began searching for colleges, I had not flown more than three times in my life.  Now, living 2000 miles away from where I grew up, flying is a more common occurrence for me.  To this day, I still hold on to the wonderment and fascination that I had when I was a young kid, flying for those first few times.  I love the idea of flight.  It is almost romantic how such great distances can be bridged by the power of flight.  When I fly, I always choose a window seat, and if I don't have one I feel that I have been cheated out of the aviation experience.  I enjoy watching the ground go by, observing remote landmarks, and speculating what life must be like for the people that live below me.

My best experience with flight was this summer when I was hired to take photos for a magazine in Des Moines Iowa.  Part of my job was to get into a small bi-plane and fly around Des Moines.  The experience was incredible.  Being able to feel the rush of air and to stick my hands out to feel the plane's speed was very unique, as I have only flown in large commercial airplanes before.  This flight alone made me consider the idea of getting a pilots license.  

This is a selfie I snagged from the cockpit of the biplane.  Sunset over Des Moines.

Much of what David Werntz taught us in class was knowledge that I have retained from my days as an aerospace engineering student, his lecture reignited the spark that I once had to get my pilots license.  I think the opportunity would be amazing, however I do not know when I might get a chance within my lifetime.  Also, it is super expensive.

I need to research something in this blog post, so I am going to examine how expensive it is to participate in this hobby.

The AOPA estimates the cost of obtaining a pilot's license around $5,000 to $10,000.   Additionally, on a Cessna flying club forum users have written that the cost of flying a Cessna 172 can range from $90 to $130 an hour, which includes the cost of gas which can be about $7 a gallon.

A quick cross-reference of these numbers against those on my bank statement (data omitted from blog post) provide enough quantitative evidence to suggest that I will not be able to accomplish this any time soon.  I suppose I can hold onto the dream of one day flying my own airplane from my home in California to my parents in Wisconsin, but for now I am going to have to put it on hold.  

A Cessna 172 (Photo from flyingmag.com)

 




Sources:
http://www.aopa.org/letsgoflying/ready/time/options.html
http://www.cessna172club.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=34245

Higher Sensing

To someone who has not familiarized themselves with the phenomenon of flight (like myself before this class), it seems entirely illogical that a 75 ton hunk of metal carrying x amount of human passengers and cargo could move freely through the open air to remote destinations defying gravity as it is easily understood. SERIOUSLY WHAT THE HELL ARE THESE PIONEERS OF FLIGHT THINKING?! I’d call it a death wish, but it works?????????

Of course upon greater exploration of the topic through class discussions and David Werntz’s talk, I found that there is a lot wrong with the statement I just made seeing that planes in flight DO NOT move freely in space nor deny gravity, and instead are constrained by and operate entirely in conjunction with the physical pieces of matter in air flow that consumes all existence. Learning about the aerodynamics that enable flight this week really illuminated my understanding about the density and fullness of all space in contrast with the emptiness we perceive. I think that is something we blind ourselves to regularly because of our perceptive reliance on vision.

 This concept was really illustrated for me through David’s comparison between taking in to account physical forces of air flow when turning a plane, to swimming across a river with the understanding that there is a very present and visible down stream force that will have effect on our route. The idea is the same aerodynamically but we seem to separate them because the forces of air flow on the plane are not as easy to conceive as the river flow because it is microscopic enough that we cannot see it visibly. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ltjFEei3AI

https://freetrispeed.com/tag/physics-of-triathlon/page/2/

This reliance on visual sensing seems to be an underlying gap that plays a party in our perception of why flight poses greater unknown and “danger". With that being said, in learning about the present understanding of flight and the history of discovery that got us to this point I am just impressed. The manipulation of the forces of density, weight, and inertia to produce thrust, drag, and lift in flight speaks to the growing depth of humanity’s scientific understanding about matters beyond the perception of the naked eye, and the development of alternate sensing. With this distinction it seems that there is something truly insightful and advanced about the reliance on senses and knowledge beyond what is seen, through flight. For me, I now seen pilots in a way that is extremely enlightened both scientifically and artistically. 

Something that came up for me when reflecting on the subject is an event called SeaFair held in Seattle towards the beginning of August every year. At this event people gather in and around Lake Washington on their boats and on bridges to be a spectator of the Navy's Blue Angel aircrafts as they put on a choreographed air show for the public. As I have been a spectator to this many times, I am always mind boggled by the precision of the show. With the greater understanding I have gained in these lectures I am excited to return this summer and appreciate the show in a new light. 

Accessibility of the Air

[This is undoubtably an overly-pessimistic view, and I fully believe that within our lifetimes, air and space will continue to become more and more accessible.]

As an undergraduate student, the idea of flying solitarily or only with a few others seems like a total luxury, something imagined through the rosy glasses of such films as Out of Africa or The English Patient, where solo flights are dangerous, but incredibly romantic -- where they provide an elite escape for colonialists, but not for those sans power. Additionally, and perhaps because our class readings have been primarily focused on the flight of the past, I felt that now not only through fiction, but through historical fact, my historical distance from such events was secured.

A ridiculous scene.

Also this. 

Today, solo flight remains highly elite. While commercial flight can also be seen this way, there is something undeniably individualistic about controlling one’s own path, burning one’s own fuel, etc. This experience of singular machine and singular human immersed in the natural world is incredibly intimate and personal, and provides an intriguing argument for the necessity of machine in our human exploration of the world. But despite Werntz’ assertions, I was reminded that flying was not something everyone can participate in.

Listening to the lecture, I couldn’t help but continue to see non-commercial flight as an impossibility for myself or my loved ones. To me, flight may take humanity beyond our natural limits, but it still relies on our constructed, or artificial ones. The form of escape flight provides cannot escape us from health or financial binds. Born in an era where humanity had already set foot on the moon, where commercial flight has become commonplace in developed countries, I have always seen the UP of air and space as achievable. It is these other limits that are more difficult to push ourselves UP out of. 

From the ground on Tuesday, I felt as if listening to a bird tell stories  -- a great metal bird with a head and heart of human flesh and blood -- a creature that could take off into an open space yet beyond my limitations.

i'm just not really down to go up, you feel me?

While David Werntz was a wonderful guest speaker, I still have my reservations about solo flight.  His knowledge of the mechanics of flight was without a doubt reassuring, and I think that it is important for  us to learn about too since there are many objects or processes we rely on daily that we have a rudimentary level of understanding about at best.  All of us in the class have boarded a plane at least once in our lives, but many of us knew nothing about how they actually work before this lecture... isn't that strange?  That while we are quick to question each other about almost anything, a complex machine has the luxury of silent authority?  I'm not trying to theorize any weird conspiracies or write about how we can't trust robots, but, as evident in my midterm project, I am fascinated by how different our relationship is to machines or objects than to each other.  

 

source: http://www.aviationexplorer.com/Various_Aircraft/USA_Domestic_Airliners_Chart.jpg

This was an image we looked at in class.  While I can't tell the difference between any of these airplanes (comparing sizes, not logos) I have probably boarded a few of them and not really thought about any of their differences or how they are made...  In high school I knew a kid who would always tell me about the make and model of the airplane that he was going to get on to go visit his family in Singapore and I thought he was one of the weirdest people, but maybe he had the right idea?  Why wouldn't knowing about the airplane you were about to board for 14 hours be valuable knowledge?

Something else that struck me during the lecture was the strange element of luxury in being able to fly.  I don't typically associate leisure with flying because I don't fly too often, and when I do it is because I need to go somewhere.  The actual flight is not the luxurious part for me, but when you are flying your own airplane apparently it is!  Hearing about how the flying club will play games like the flour drop or poker was sort of surreal to me.  Call me a party pooper, but how insane is it that you could spend like $200 to literally play a game that required you to fly around in a plane you rented? And maybe I'm being hypocritical since I've spent half of that going to see some of my favorite bands, but it does feel strange to me.

I've been thinking a lot about luxury and flight lately and how absurd the concept is to me.  Take this image for example:

source: http://www.people.com/people/greatideas/gallery/0,,20960158_30402343,00.html#30402351

What I would ask upon seeing this image is: Why the hell do you need a full meal and bougie pillows with a high thread count on a plane??? Why do you need a flat screen TV??? I can respect the spacious leg room, but that's about it.  And maybe I have it wrong because I'm sure there are people who would ask: Well, why the hell wouldn't you need this?  But it does seem quite frivolous to me.  

Also, if we want to get more absurd... something that I forget about is the fact that we pay money to jump out of planes!  

source: http://cdn.skim.gs/image/upload/v1456337585/msi/4_-_GKF4_Exiting_Aircraft_mj1c8s.jpg

According to my research one jump would cost about $300 if you wanted pictures/video of it too.  It's honestly a wild concept if you think about it.  I also understand that it is fun and that we are pleasure-seeking creatures, but I still think that it is healthy to question some of what we do and why in order to put things into perspective.  Maybe it has to do with privilege, maybe I'm too much of a realist, or, if you're an optimist, maybe I'm too much of a pessimist?  And in comparing skydiving to solo flight, the second option is much less absurd than the first.  I don't think either will be in my future since I should probably spend my money more responsibly as a student, but hey, never say never.

Anyone Can Fly a Plane, But Not Everyone Should

An image of me flying a plane, probably.

Singers are often born with an innate vocal talent and ability. Many athletes are born with certain physiques that allow them to succeed in their sport. According to Certified Flight Instructor David Werntz, anyone can fly a plane. There are no special skills or any biological traits that suggest pilots were meant to be pilots. 

We can all be pilots.

Except me.

I have trouble driving a car for more than two hours without feeling drowsy. And though (according to David) flying a plane requires less active attention and concern, I'm not sure I trust myself to fly a vehicle so sophisticated and heavy and impossibly high in the air. I struggle with the cruise control feature of my SUV.

When I was younger, my great-uncle had a flight simulator on his computer. I would sit up in the chair and "steer" planes (with a poorly attached yoke) until I would inevitably crash the thing into the ocean.  I think I would cry when I crashed the simulator. I felt guilty. I thought to myself, "You're not flying a plane– that would be irresponsible" (yes, at 7-years-old I guess I chastised myself).

Totally manageable. Where's the AUX plug?

And yet, after David's presentation, each time I see a plane flying overhead I have a moment of consideration about what it would be like to be in control of a vehicle so powerful and curious. The small planes, of course... let's not get ahead of ourselves. One of the misconceptions that David cleared up for me was that when the engine fails in the plane it doesn't necessarily mean all is doom and gloom from there. Because of the amount of lift and drag (and depending how high up you're flying) you have minutes and miles to find a safe place to land. It's comforting to know, but I'm not sure this stress case would be able to make the right decisions under pressure. That was another skill that David talked about: confidence and quick decision making under stressful (perhaps dangerous) circumstances. I think that may be the ability that will hold me back from hopping in a plane and learning how to fly. There are so many instances in which crashes and disasters were avoided due to quick thinking and having the confidence to apply what you've learned immediately.

The only aircraft you can trust me to operate.