Insiders - Issue #48

Welcome to the Airplane Academy Insiders Newsletter where I share aviation lessons learned, my latest content, and other helpful links. I'm glad you're here. Let's dive in!

Your Fellow Left-Seater,
Charlie

Charlie Gasmire

CSEL, CMEL, SES, IR, Tailwheel, Cessna 182 Owner

I Learned This From That

This advice has been a game changer in my life. So stay tuned.

I haven't been able to fly much lately. The weather has just absolutely sucked in Dallas.

It's frustrating to open the weather app and see nothing but storms for the next 10 days.

But somewhere in that frustration, an old piece of advice has come back to mind.

"Anytime something doesn't go the way you want, ask yourself.... what does this enable me to do now, that I couldn't do before?"

I don't remember who said that, but it has stuck with me.

It's easy to focus on what isn't going your way. But if you're open to seeing it from a different angle, one closed door always seems to open another.

A while back I had to cancel a flight due to thunderstorms and make a 10-hour drive round-trip instead.

At first I was really frustrated, to the point where it was causing some get-there-itis and I almost made a bad decision to fly.

But once I released the grip on wanting to fly instead of drive, I realized that I would have 10 hours in the car all to myself... catch up on podcasts, think, pray, sing with the radio, or call a friend.

Sounded pretty therapeutic.

"What does this enable me to do that I couldn't do before?"

I want that to be my reaction when stuff isn't going the way I planned.

Because I promise you... your flying journey will be bumpy. Mine has had plenty of seasons of bad weather, long maintenance, losing instrument currency, and more.

It will happen to you, too... everything from bad weather to maybe an unexpected job change.

So it benefits us to get good at adjusting when things don't go as planned.

Honestly, that's a huge weakness of mine. I get so tied to "my plan", and when it doesn't pan out, I get flustered.

But asking that question above has been a really helpful antidote.

Use it the next time your plans need to change. Because sooner or later, they will.

Your Fellow Left-Seater,
Charlie

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My Latest Content

I recently got to fly a 1942 Waco and it was SO. MUCH. FUN.

It's wild because you absolutely cannot see anything in front of you during taxi, takeoff, and landing. That was new to me. I got to document the whole training flight here! I hope you'll check it out. It was a fun one.

Flying Lesson in a WWII Era Biplane (Waco UPF-7 Full Demo)

Gasmire Glimpse

We had our third baby! Baby girl. Everyone is healthy (just tired!). Our other kids are 5 and 3 and so it's a bit of a rodeo at our house but I feel very fortunate. Definitely in newborn fog right now but trying to appreciate the time because I know it doesn't last long!