G-Day All!!

Beechlover · July 2nd, 2006, 10:41

Hello all.., I just wanted to introduce myself.., my name is Rudy, I'm 42, and USAF Retired, currently working in OKC (Tinker Afb) as a defense contractor. I just recently married the woman of my dreams who has re-ignited my passion for flying. She's virtually shot down every excuse I ever had for not pursuing my dream all these yrs. I stopped at my PPL 15 yrs ago for a previous marraige (bad choice) and flew as an AWACS (non pilot) crew member for 17yrs. Now that I'm retired, the kids are raised and she can get a job ANYWHERE in the country (she's a Nurse go figure)we are free to LIVE LIFE baby!!! and here we come!

I've scoured the "www" and took a good hard look at schools such as ATP, Mesa, RAA, OU, Delta Academy, Flight Safety etc. And after a phone conversation with a CFI here at Ari Ben, I know that this is the right place for me to get my new career started!

Gonna get the house on the market, put in our two weeks notice, and we're outa here!!! yeah!! I've been looking foward to this day my whole life, and we're gonna do it! We so look foward to meeting everyone there in the near future. Take care and best wishes.

bwade210 · July 2nd, 2006, 13:39

Congratulations on your success and good luck with your future flying goals!

LoadMasterC141 · July 2nd, 2006, 13:59

Good for you man! If you aren't dead, it is never too late to follow your dreams! Come join me and the other "mid-life" dreamers at the changing career forum from time to time!

I am thinking ATP right now, simply because of proximity and speed of the program. If that were not a factor, I would probably have picked ARI-BEN. From everything I have read here and other places, the atmosphere seems unrivaled.

Beechlover · July 2nd, 2006, 21:57

Thanks, Im really looking foward to it!

BrianNC · July 3rd, 2006, 02:20

Be sure to keep us up to date and start the "required" thread in here of your training.

Adam2006 · July 3rd, 2006, 06:07

Nice to meet you. Maybe we will meet up in training. I'm shooting for sept/octish. What about you? Are you going in 2 weeks?

FO2B · July 3rd, 2006, 07:52

Beachlover, Congrats on your decision to follow your dream. I just retired after 20 yrs from the USAF (Buff-nav). I can tell you that you've made a good choice with the Aviator. I puched all of my tickets while still on active duty, then completed the 100 hr block of multi at the Aviator. It is well worth the money spent. I start training on thur with ExpressJet flying EMB-145s. Hey did you know Gen Si Johnson, Dave Alexander or Ilias Kavorgias?
DJ

Beechlover · July 3rd, 2006, 08:10

Well now that the decision has been made, we have alot to do yet. I plan to set up an appt to get my Class 1 physical done. Gonna call the VA to get a HARD COPY of the available balance of my GI Bill money. My wife has some job hunting to do. I think we may visit Fort Peirce to do some house/apt hunting, look at the hospitals/clinics in the area and to visit Ari-Ben! Then put the house on the market. Once that sells, we'll put in our notices at work, then it's a 3 day road trip to Florida! I'm hoping to be there by Sep-Oct time frame. Sooner if able.

Catherine · July 3rd, 2006, 09:42

Way to go Beechlover! Chase those dreams and it's great to have someone there to stand by your side to do it!

Although ATP is pretty attractive with 90 days, because they prefer you to have the writtens done before you get there, it kept me from really wanting to go as I couldn't spend that time studying and taking those tests before I left and then forgetting a lot of it once I got there and doing the ratings wasn't going to be the best for me, nor trying to do the whole thing in 90 days as well as studying for the writtens while flying too IMHO. It's possible to do the course in 6 months here without driving yourself nuts and taking a couple of days off here and there to enjoy yourself and get refreshed and back into the flying. I'm glad I made the choice in coming here, I'm going to finish very close to my intended time to finish in just over 6 months and lots of others have done the same lately.

MFT1Air · July 3rd, 2006, 19:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Catherine

Way to go Beechlover! Chase those dreams and it's great to have someone there to stand by your side to do it!

Although ATP is pretty attractive with 90 days, because they prefer you to have the writtens done before you get there, it kept me from really wanting to go as I couldn't spend that time studying and taking those tests before I left and then forgetting a lot of it once I got there and doing the ratings wasn't going to be the best for me, nor trying to do the whole thing in 90 days as well as studying for the writtens while flying too IMHO. It's possible to do the course in 6 months here without driving yourself nuts and taking a couple of days off here and there to enjoy yourself and get refreshed and back into the flying. I'm glad I made the choice in coming here, I'm going to finish very close to my intended time to finish in just over 6 months and lots of others have done the same lately.

So, when is your "transition" date, Catherine?

Beechlover · July 3rd, 2006, 20:26

FO2B, What a small world, I do know Dave Alexander (MCC) and Kavorgias (AC), great guys to work and fly with. I see Dave in Sim every now and then. I asked around but "but no one seemed to know Si Johnson, was he a wing CC at Tinker? I was at Kadena for several yrs so maybe I missed him. So when were you in AWACS? I was a Weapons guy in my active duty life.

FO2B · July 4th, 2006, 11:52

Beachlover,
Yes it is a small world. Dave and I were Lts together back at Mather, Castle and Guam. Illias (aka Icky) were crewed together at KI Sawyer. Gen Johnson was my Wing CC at Castle when I was an instructor there. Is Jim Gongware(sp) still flying the AWACS? If you see Dave tell him DJ Johnson says Hi.

Catherine · July 4th, 2006, 12:09

My transition from student to instructor should be middle to late this month just depending on how quickly after the MEI checkride I can get my CFI and II checkrides in and do the drug test, 10 hours of backseating, interview with Mike, etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MFT1Air

So, when is your "transition" date, Catherine?

July 2nd, 2006, 10:41	#1
Beechlover Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Flyin with my Sweetie!!! Posts: 265	G-Day All!! Hello all.., I just wanted to introduce myself.., my name is Rudy, I'm 42, and USAF Retired, currently working in OKC (Tinker Afb) as a defense contractor. I just recently married the woman of my dreams who has re-ignited my passion for flying. She's virtually shot down every excuse I ever had for not pursuing my dream all these yrs. I stopped at my PPL 15 yrs ago for a previous marraige (bad choice) and flew as an AWACS (non pilot) crew member for 17yrs. Now that I'm retired, the kids are raised and she can get a job ANYWHERE in the country (she's a Nurse go figure)we are free to LIVE LIFE baby!!! and here we come! I've scoured the "www" and took a good hard look at schools such as ATP, Mesa, RAA, OU, Delta Academy, Flight Safety etc. And after a phone conversation with a CFI here at Ari Ben, I know that this is the right place for me to get my new career started! Gonna get the house on the market, put in our two weeks notice, and we're outa here!!! yeah!! I've been looking foward to this day my whole life, and we're gonna do it! We so look foward to meeting everyone there in the near future. Take care and best wishes.

July 2nd, 2006, 13:39	#2
bwade210 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: KSAT & K1T7 Posts: 474	Re: G-Day All!! Congratulations on your success and good luck with your future flying goals! __________________ "Failure to prepare, is preparing to fail!"

July 2nd, 2006, 13:59	#3
LoadMasterC141 Old Skool Join Date: May 2006 Location: Live in Arlington, TX - From Ithaca, NY - Wish I was on an island in Fiji Posts: 1,948	Re: G-Day All!! Good for you man! If you aren't dead, it is never too late to follow your dreams! Come join me and the other "mid-life" dreamers at the changing career forum from time to time! I am thinking ATP right now, simply because of proximity and speed of the program. If that were not a factor, I would probably have picked ARI-BEN. From everything I have read here and other places, the atmosphere seems unrivaled.

July 2nd, 2006, 21:57	#4
Beechlover Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Flyin with my Sweetie!!! Posts: 265	Re: G-Day All!! Thanks, Im really looking foward to it!

July 3rd, 2006, 02:20	#5
BrianNC Senior Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 817	Re: G-Day All!! Be sure to keep us up to date and start the "required" thread in here of your training. __________________ BrianNC

July 3rd, 2006, 06:07	#6
Adam2006 Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Socal Posts: 214	Re: G-Day All!! Nice to meet you. Maybe we will meet up in training. I'm shooting for sept/octish. What about you? Are you going in 2 weeks? __________________ adam

July 3rd, 2006, 07:52	#7
FO2B Newbie Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6	Re: G-Day All!! Beachlover, Congrats on your decision to follow your dream. I just retired after 20 yrs from the USAF (Buff-nav). I can tell you that you've made a good choice with the Aviator. I puched all of my tickets while still on active duty, then completed the 100 hr block of multi at the Aviator. It is well worth the money spent. I start training on thur with ExpressJet flying EMB-145s. Hey did you know Gen Si Johnson, Dave Alexander or Ilias Kavorgias? DJ

July 3rd, 2006, 08:10	#8
Beechlover Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Flyin with my Sweetie!!! Posts: 265	Re: G-Day All!! Well now that the decision has been made, we have alot to do yet. I plan to set up an appt to get my Class 1 physical done. Gonna call the VA to get a HARD COPY of the available balance of my GI Bill money. My wife has some job hunting to do. I think we may visit Fort Peirce to do some house/apt hunting, look at the hospitals/clinics in the area and to visit Ari-Ben! Then put the house on the market. Once that sells, we'll put in our notices at work, then it's a 3 day road trip to Florida! I'm hoping to be there by Sep-Oct time frame. Sooner if able.

July 3rd, 2006, 09:42	#9
Catherine Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 149	Re: G-Day All!! Way to go Beechlover! Chase those dreams and it's great to have someone there to stand by your side to do it! Although ATP is pretty attractive with 90 days, because they prefer you to have the writtens done before you get there, it kept me from really wanting to go as I couldn't spend that time studying and taking those tests before I left and then forgetting a lot of it once I got there and doing the ratings wasn't going to be the best for me, nor trying to do the whole thing in 90 days as well as studying for the writtens while flying too IMHO. It's possible to do the course in 6 months here without driving yourself nuts and taking a couple of days off here and there to enjoy yourself and get refreshed and back into the flying. I'm glad I made the choice in coming here, I'm going to finish very close to my intended time to finish in just over 6 months and lots of others have done the same lately. __________________ Catherine "A pilot can't help second-guessing every other pilot; it's an occupational disease. Sorry" Richard Ames, THE CAT WHO WALKS THROUGH WALLS Instructor at Ari Ben Aviator

July 3rd, 2006, 20:26	#11
Beechlover Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Flyin with my Sweetie!!! Posts: 265	Re: G-Day All!! FO2B, What a small world, I do know Dave Alexander (MCC) and Kavorgias (AC), great guys to work and fly with. I see Dave in Sim every now and then. I asked around but "but no one seemed to know Si Johnson, was he a wing CC at Tinker? I was at Kadena for several yrs so maybe I missed him. So when were you in AWACS? I was a Weapons guy in my active duty life.

July 4th, 2006, 11:52	#12
FO2B Newbie Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6	Re: G-Day All!! Beachlover, Yes it is a small world. Dave and I were Lts together back at Mather, Castle and Guam. Illias (aka Icky) were crewed together at KI Sawyer. Gen Johnson was my Wing CC at Castle when I was an instructor there. Is Jim Gongware(sp) still flying the AWACS? If you see Dave tell him DJ Johnson says Hi.

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