I think I posted this once before on the Barton airport thread..... but it's worth reading again.... yes, I know we are all converts anyway, but it's a great piece. Thanks to my good friend from the US, Michael Johnson, who wrote this
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So you know where babies come from… but where do pilots come from?
Aviation seems to have a love-hate relationship with society. People love to travel with ease and speed, but they abhor the side effects like noise and fear of susceptibility to terrorism.
Nowhere does the conundrum come more to roost than at the local hometown airport. It is here that any nuisance to residents combines with alternative economic interests to force the extinction of the aerodrome. And then a certain stereotypical perception of pilots comes into play and introduces an element of personal envy.
Local pilots are often seen as rich people with extravagant toys. Of course military jet pilots in defense of the country and airline transport pilots landing at “big” airports are held in great esteem. But where do they come from?
Well, they come from “little” airports. At one point in life those pilots, perhaps as a child, became caught up in the spirit of flight, the wonderment of the sky and the challenge of mastering the control of an airplane. This was probably inspired by observation or experience in a small plane in the local environment. Jet pilots don’t start out in jets; most begin in a two-place trainer costing about the same as a decent family automobile. These are not extravagant toys and while some business planes can be very expensive, most are not in the league of the neighbor’s BMW or Mercedes Benz in terms of cost after depreciation.
So the local airport is not just for those who hang around and fly for fun. Of course it enables flight training for future airline pilots the military. But it also supports those who fly for business, even if it is a grass strip.
Businesses and the related jobs are at the economic core of an airport. It is a launching point for pilots who do traffic reports, ferry cargo or documents, inspect pipelines and utility grids, dispense fungicides on cropland and transport passengers.
And never forget the value of ‘little” airplanes operating out of “little” airports in urgent and emergency situations. When a child is lost or a boat at peril, caring pilots come out of the woodwork to donate time and resources to the search. Local pilots are indispensable in spotting fires and directing firefighting efforts… and they play an effective role in law enforcement as well.
They transport medical supplies, blood, human organs and injured people from disaster areas. Volunteer pilots routinely fly sick patients from remote areas to urban hospitals for treatment. In times of war, or now of terrorism, they provide an extra set of eyes on security patrol to relieve the military for more urgent maneuvers. Are there no persons left who remember civilian coastal submarine patrol… or have they just forgotten?
And let’s be honest, while approximately 65 % of general aviation flights are for business and public service, some are just for fun.
There is no denying the beauty of the sky from aloft as the sun rises; or the thrill of one’s first sightseeing ride; or the accomplishment of sliding a glider onto the grass on a summer day after circling with the hawks. Pilots will always be taken with the spiritual experience of flying and the magic of the sky. It is not wrong to enjoy these activities that bring quality to our lives.
As a society we must respect and protect the interests of others, no matter how different or remote from our own experiences and aspirations. The ability to travel without restriction is a fundamental of our free society and should be fervently defended by all for all.
When autos are banned from the freeways in deference to buses, when bicycles are restricted as a public nuisance, when pleasure boats are deemed not justifiable for privilege, and airports are driven to extinction, our society is devalued.
There are always alternative locations for shopping malls and condominiums. When a local airport dies from dissident neighbors, shortsighted governmental regulation, or economic pressure on land value, they do not reappear. A precious community and societal asset is gone forever.
Michael R. Johnson