This afternoon I had the pleasure of an introduction to the Aruba Flying Club. A local friend of mine is a member and a student pilot. We've been talking about airplanes and flying for several years now and we finally made time to go to the airport. There I was introduced to the fellow who re-started the club after it had been inactive as well as to their number one instructor, who had just been up with a student.
You may not notice it when landing in Aruba aboard a jetliner, but those winds make it very challenging to land in a small plane like the Cessna 172 owned by the club. This is the same type of plane that I fly in the states. However, I don't have much experience in 30 knot winds. I spoke at length with the instructor, a guy who holds most every certificate there is including helicopters.
I was also impressed at the amount of general aviation activity at the airport. There are turboprop planes carrying between 6-10 passengers back and forth to Venezuela all day long. There are also a number of planes owned by islanders and others parked on the ramp. The new GA terminal features security and immigration facilities, a small lounge, and a snack bar.
This is one more reason why I like Aruba, a great flying club. I look forward to flying with them when I turn in my next novel.
For a direct link to the photo of us see:
http://bentpage.wordpress.com/2009/0...lying-friends/.
Bon dia from la isla. 44