Wife agrees to go flying

A little background: my wife *DOES* get motion sickness. She's been
going along with my airplane building project for many years now and
over time has grown comfortable with the concept that building an
airplane isn't so hairbrained after all. I've made sure she's been
informed of all the successful home building projects and continually
show her finished airplanes from "Sport Aviation" magazine. So she's
ok with me building the airplane, and she enthusiastically agreed that
it was now time for me to finish my flight lessons begun so long ago.
But actually flying with me, that was something she didn't really want
to discuss, until now, now that I have my pilots license.

She knew I really wanted her to come with me but I knew enough to not
push it hard. I took a couple of flights since I passed the
practical, one solo and another with a friend/mentor who has many
years of flight experience and once taught flying and who flies a
UPF-7 Waco biplane. He was effusive in his praise of the flight to my
wife. That helped a lot as my wife knows he is a consumate
perfectionist, not prone to praise lightly.

So a couple of weeks ago, in the midst of this stretch of really nice
weather we've been having here in New England, I casually asked her if
she'd like to go up for a little hop. Ooooohhhh, not sure, was her
response. I explained that the winds are very calm and that we could
go during the evening when the winds mostly die to dead calm. She
finally agreed to try, as long as I would immediatelyreturn to the
field if things went bad for her. Of course, I responded.

I knew that the great weather couldn't last and it didn't. I planned
the flight for this Saturday, in the evening, beginning at 5. By
then, the high that had been dominating the northeast for a week had
slid by and we were picking up a southern flow of air and some low
clouds. But the wind was still gentle and the clouds were scattered
at the moment at at a reported 4,000 feet with a broken layer at
6,000. I hadn't planned to climb higher than 3,000, so we were good
to go.

I'd booked the airplane for a 5:00 departure and we headed out at
4:15. She was obviously nervous as we drove in, but typically decided
for us to go grocery shopping after the flight. That was a good sign,
it meant that she considered the flight something that would happen
and be ok.

We arrived at Lebanon around 10 of five and after a bit of banter with
the office at Signal, were handed the dispatch book for the 172 I like
flying. Both airplanes were there but I like the older airplane
better because the controls are less stiff, plus I knew that the newer
airplane had just come in and would be the always problematic hot
start. We walked out to the airplane and I showed her how we untied
it and then went through the preflight, item by item. She watched me
carefully as I walked around the airplane and checked it over. I had
to tell her to duck her head when I dropped the flaps. When all was
done, I explained how she should climb in and how to move the seat up.
I also raised it to make sure she could see easily out through the
windshield. She told me she didn't want to be close to the controls
and didn't want to touch them. I explained that she could move the
seat up a little bit, so she was at least sitting beside me and didn't
push her to hold the controls. Then I climbed in and we both strapped
in and began the starting checklist. Part of that is to explain to
the passengers how to get out in an emergency, how to open the doors
and windows and where the fire extinguisher is and how to operate it.
As we drove home later, I found out that she really didn't like
hearing about emergency egress and the fire extinguisher, it made her
nervous.

The engine fired up without any trouble and I turned on the avionics
and explained how to adjust the headset so she could speak properly,
then went about the instrument checks and got the ATIS information.
It was "Foxtrot". I reported in to ground with location and "Foxtrot"
and requested taxi to takeoff. Ground came back with instructions to
taxi to runway 18. I explained to my wife where 18 was and moved out
turning right to head past the FBO and then turning left on the
taxiway to get to 18. She nervously asked me if I'd forgotten to
close my window, and I explained that I'd left it open for ventilation
and that I'd close it shortly.

I explained that I would now go through the runnup to test the mags,
which meant that the engine would rev up a some. I now closed my
window, then advanced power to 1800 rpm and went through the runnup
check, explaining what I was looking for.

We were cleared for takeoff, whereupon I turned the transponder to
Alt, snapped on all the lights, taxied forward and dutifully turned
left to get to the very end of the runway as taught, then pivoted
around to line up with the centerline. There was a flock of Starlings
crossing the field at ground level not far down the runway. I called
the tower and requested a hold while the Starlings crossed, he replied
that I could hold at my discression. We waited for perhaps a minute
or so, then I called to say that we were now clear and we were given
permission to roll.

I advanced power slowly while holding the centerline and explained
that we would pitch up slightly at 55 knots. That we did and we rose
smoothly into the air. I also explained that at 1100 feet we would
turn right as a part of the pattern, then turned right again to
parallel the runway. I kept an eye on my wife to make sure she wasn't
overcome, or feeling queasy, she said she was ok.

We continued climbing and I called the tower to tell them we would
head north up the Connecticut river, then head northwest for a bit.
We were cleared north. I called in when we cleared the class D
airspace.

We passed the town of Norwich on the left, then Dartmouth College on
the right, and I kept pointing out places on campus that she knew as
she had worked there for the last two years. The air was generally
calm, although there were just a few ups and downs. I leveled off at
2800 feet to stay under some low broken stratus and throttled way back
to 2100 rpm to stay relatively slow so that bumps were minimised and
the engine noise was low. Once past Dartmouth, I turned west at the
Ompompanusuc river and followed it to the Union Village Dam, a feature
she instantly recognized. Then we just tooled along route 132 to the
town where we live and I kept to the left of the road so she would
spot our house when we passed it. She was now actively looking out
the window and did excitedly speak out when she identified our house
set in the hills.

We continued on towards the upper village and then circled slowly
around to the north and back east towards the Connecticut again. I
kept commenting at various places trying to keep her actively
participating in the flight. We passed by Post Mills and I pointed
out the small grass airport there and Lake Fairlee right next to it.
At that point she asked if we could go back.

I asked if she was ok, she said yes but her ears hurt.

So I told her we'd turn south at the river and head back.

I explained that I would now listen to ATIS, and punched it in, it
hadn't changed. So at 10 miles I reported in to the north with
information Foxtrot. Since the winds were calm, I half expected to be
told to come straight in to 18 rather than use 25, which was how
traffic was being routed and there wasn't any activity, but no, the
tower requested right downwind for 25 and report downwind. So I
responded and then explained to my wife that we would be turning left
once we got in close to the pattern and then would turn right and
right again to line up with the runway. At Lebanon, most traffic is
routed in a right hand pattern for 25. Not sure why, but I suspect
it's because left hand pattern traffic ends up being hidden by a hill
through base and the turn to final. Right hand pattern traffic is
visible all the way through the pattern.

From where we were ten mile north up the Connecticut river, the
airfield is hidden by a low hill and I swung gently around to the
right to line up for the 45 to downwind. I explained every maneuver
prior to initiating it so she would not be surprised. I also
explained what the tower had told us to do.

We turned downwind and I reported in and was cleared to land. I then
told my wife that we would begin our approach as we passed the end of
the runway. That happened almost immediately and I reduced power to
1500 rpm and dropped 10 degrees of flaps. I pointed out the landmark
we would use as our turn in point to base (row of "monopoly houses")
and turned in over them. Dead ahead was the church my instructor used
to line up on base which I pointed out, then we turned again for the
runway. Too much talking and not enough flying, we were past the
runway by a little bit, but still plenty high so I just continued the
turn and now dropped to full flaps as I lined up on the centerline.

There was absolutely no wind so all control movement was minimal and
we rounded out over the end of the runway in good shape. Touchdown
was more of a jolt than she had anticipated but it was actually a fair
landing.

As we rolled out the tower contacted us to stay on frequency and cross
the runway to taxiway Bravo, then right turn back to the ramp. I
confirmed crossing the runway and turned right on Bravo.

I explained to my wife that we weren't allowed to taxi on the grass,
so I'd have to turn away from the tiedown area and we'd push back to
the tiedown space.

I lined us up, braked to a stop, turned off the avionics and pulled
the mixture to idle/cutoff, the engine woofed to a stop. We climbed
out and I attached the nose gear guide and we pushed the airplane back
to it's spot together. While I cleaned up the cockpit, my wife pulled
out the tiedown straps and hooked them on without asking.

We walked back together crossing the ramp as a rather loud executive
jet landed and taxied in behind us. I asked how she now felt about
the flight and she enthusiastically responded that SHE HADN'T FELT
SICK, AT ALL. This was great news and I was greatly relieved, as was
she. She thought that all in all the flight was really cool and she
was very pleased with how things went and that I kept her informed
throughout the flight of what I was doing and what would happen next.

I found out that even though I'd kept all banking to a minimum, she
was still a bit unnerved each time a wing went down. My friend with
the Waco told me that for first time passengers, he often rudders
through turns holding the wings level with the ailerons to minimise
exactly the fear my wife experienced.

On the way back from shopping, my wife's ears still had not unclogged,
so I suggested that she hold her nostrils closed and blow through her
nose slightly. Darned if that didn't work and they popped clear.

She's always had problems with her ears, even climbing and descending
hills while driving in the car, so it's not surprising that she would
experience the clogging when in the airplane. Next time, she'll bring
some gum to chew, she said. And that's the great news, there will be
a next time. The foliage is beginning to turn now and the upper
Connecticut Valley is a spectacular Fall scene, with Mt Washington
just 30 minutes flying northeast of us. This is a milestone for us
and I'm really pleased with the results. We called our son, who lives
and works in NYC, my wife enthusiastically predicted that he will
REALLY like flying and will pester me incessantly with questions so
I'd better be ready for a distracting flight. :-) He told me he
wants to see how accurate the flight simulators he's been using almost
all his life are, compared to the real thing.

Corky Scott