I definitely think it's more an of a mans hobby than a womans. Figured that out after joining an aviation club in Ireland. There were very few women involved & I began to understand why when I'd recieve their newsletter usually delivered six months late. Page after page was full of aircraft registrations & contributers would get awful excited over aircraft livery & aircraft movements as if it were the last thing on earth.
It just wasn't my scene at all & to try to get them to divert from this to become actively involved in other areas of aviation such as airshows, musemns, behind the scenes @ airports, pleasure flights (they perceived light aircraft as a joke; one member didn't perceive flying to Hong Kong on a regular basis & spending the whole week encounced around the airport spotting as not?
) was like trying to wake the dead.
Everyone to their own, it's usually a harmless enough activity (try telling the Greeks that) but personally it did nothing for me & I did perceive it as obsessive & nerdy. They appeared to live, breathe & eat their hobby. Wouldn't be the first type of men I'd be attracted to either. Sorry.
Perhaps part of the problem is that pilots tend to be can do, action types while spotters tend to be more passive types (& that is a major understatement) hence the clash & lack of understanding & respect between them, well eh barr the pilots that are spotters too, not to mention the general public (blimey this is getting confusing).
Still being a member did get me a few jumpseat rides off my own bat (I preferred to planespot from up there
) & entrance to an absolutely brilliant airshow so something worthwhile did come out of it.
P.S. I think there's a big difference from turning your face skyward when hearing an aircraft, something I'll admit to do & being a planespotter. The two just aren't the same.
But if that's what you perceive a spotter to be well hell then I must be a spotter.
