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The Battalion
Page 3 • Friday, January 24, 2003
I Just Wanna Fly
Student pilots balance time between airways and classes
By Lyndsey Sage
THE BATTALION
It’s not everyday that one flies to another airport just to eat a
hamburger. But if you’re Steven Parkinson, a senior computer
engineering major and licensed pilot, the “$100 Hamburger,” as
the practice is called, might not seem so out of the norm.
According to Parkinson, the “$100 Hamburger” is when the
pilot flies to another local airport, eats at the restaurant and
then flies back to his home airport for the price of $100.
Parkinson is one of many students who have taken
their interest in aviation to a new level by earning their
pilot’s license.
Parkinson, who was cer
tified in August to fly private
planes, said that although he
has always been interested in fly
ing. he “never considered going and
doing it” until last February when his wife gave
him a discovery flight for Valentine’s Day. The
discovery flight, which is designed to acquaint
passengers with the fundamentals of flying,
was enough to convince Parkinson to
begin training.
According to Jay Hencken, a senior
computer science major and membership
coordinator of the Texas A&M Flying
Club, students learn to fly onsite at the
Easterwood airport in College Station.
“(The club) does instructions all the way
from getting your private up through getting
your commercial or instructor’s certificate,” he
said. “We contract with instructors to offer training.’
The Federal Aviation Administration requires a
minimum of 40 hours of flight time and 20 hours of flight
instruction, which amount to approximately $3,000. However, in
most cases, more flight experience is needed before certification.
Once all of the flight requirements are complete, which include
a certain amount of night and cross-country flying, the potential
pilot must pass a flight test with a Certified Flight Instructor and
take a written exam before receiving his permit.
Mike Madden, a junior international studies major, said that train
RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION
ing is “definitely a challenge, and you have to
be ready to accept that challenge.”
“The first goal is to solo the plane, which is when you go
by yourself without the instructor and do some landings by yourself,”
he said. “Once you get over that, that’s when things get rolling.”
Students who have completed their training find that taking a
plane up for a spin makes for a good release during the hectic weeks
of school. While time limits the amount of flight time for many dur
ing the school year, Hencken flies twice a week, weather permitting.
For Hencken, who has been flying for 3 1/2 years, flying is
something he has wanted to do since childhood.
“My dad was a pilot so that helped me get involved,”
Hencken said. “I have been interested in flying ever since I
was a boy.”
Madden, who has been flying since he was 15, also said that
he has been interested in flying for as long as he can remem
ber. By the time he was 19, he had earned his private and
commercial licenses as well as his certification to be a
flight instructor.
“I have learned most about flying through being
a flight instructor,” he said. “Some of my scariest
moments have also been when I- was a flight
instructor.”
Among these experiences are radio fail
ures and engines that are close to failing,
he said. However, his scariest experience
yet came when he was in the pilot’s seat.
Madden said he was flying a plane with landing
gear that descended when the plane was in flight
and came up for landing.
“I was flying in for a landing, and the gear
didn’t come down,” he said. “I had to
hand crank it to come down.”
Madden plans to continue
flying when he graduates, either
as a fighter pilot for the Air Force or
a commercial pilot.
In addition to the career opportunities it has opened for him.
Madden said he enjoys the other liberties that flying provides.
“It has such freedom,” he said. “You can go anywhere.”
The certain advantages his hobby offers, such as flying to
Oklahoma for the afternoon to shop for houses or flying to
Mesquite to have breakfast with family, are incentives that draw
Parkinson’s interest, too; however, Parkinson said the excitement
it offers keeps him in the cockpit as well.
While some of that excitement can be a bit scary, like the time
that a deer ran in front of his plane when he was doing touch-
and-goes (where the pilot lands and immediately takes off again)
and he had to come to a sudden stop, Parkinson said that the “fun
environment” is what attracts people to this unique hobby.
“It’s something that not many people have done,” he said.
“And most of the people who do it, they fall in love with it.”
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IN THEATERS JANUARY 24
th® v, ( .
Cambridge
© college station
student housing
RESIDENT ASSISTANTS FOR FALL 2003
The Cambridge@College Station, the newest and most innovative
student housing serving the Texas A&M community is proud to
invite student leaders with a strong commitment to community
service, to apply for the Resident Assistant position.
/OB DESCRIPTION
• Desk Shifts
• Administrative Tasks
• Plan Social, Educational and Recreational Activities
• Minor Maintenance Tasks
• Policy Enforcement
• Crisis Intervention
• Peer Counseling
• Numerous other Services
COMPENSATION
• Rent Free Room and Full Meal Plan
REQUIREMENTS
• Full Time A&M University or Blinn College Student
• 2.5 Overall GPA
• Sophomore or above
• At least 19 years old by August 2003
• Have previously lived on campus or in a student community
for at least one semester
• No pending discipline issues
Students who meet the above requirements should complete
an RA Application available at
The Cambridge@College Station Leasing Center,
501 University Oaks, C.S.
Deadline for applications is Monday, February 3, 2003