Flying requires a lot of training and practice. Anybody can become a good pilot and make good landings. Being a great pilot requires more. No masterpiece landing or smooth flight in turbulence without talent. This is not given to all of us and the hardest work can’t give the same results. Is this difference the same as between a good and a great musician, or between a good painter and a great painter ? Does this similarity prove that flying is an art ?
This brigs us to the question of this last readers poll for 2008: what is flying ?
- An art ?
- A sport ?
- A hobby ?
- A job ?
- A skill ?
- A loss of time ?
- A passion ?
- A hazard ?
I’m sure you’ll find time to answer this question before New Year’s Eve.
PS: you can also take part in previous polls: Are you IFR rated ? – Are you a faithful pilot ? – Glass-cockpit ? – Your next objective ?
Vincent Lambercy is a Swiss private pilot now living in Germany. He holds a private pilot certificate with single-engine, multi-engine and instrument ratings and has logged more than 430 hours of flight.
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I think it’s a vocation – something that combines passion and calling – and for a lucky few it is a profession. But from your list, I would choose ‘skill’.