It has certainly been a long time since I have posted on this blog. When I started it, almost 5 years ago, I knew nothing of how to write a blog or how difficult it would be to keep it going. I had so much fun writing it, and hoped that readers would enjoy it. I had some good ideas on what to write about and focused on general stories related to my job, things I've done on overnights, and a segment called, Plane of My Past. I started to run out of ideas to write about and quite frankly, life got in the way and led to me neglecting this site. I am still not sure how much I will write, but I am thinking I will write for myself and at the same time, hope that you, the reader, enjoy it as well.
Since the last time I posted here, much has changed in my life. Most importantly, I got married 6 months ago. It's my first and I would love to say she is the woman of my dreams, but that would be an major understatement. She FAR exceeded my expectations and I am so lucky we found each other. I never knew life could be so good. I had worked very hard at my career and had neglected my personal life. The life of a pilot is such that you are away from home so much. I realized that I would have to find a strong, independent woman who could take care of things when I was away. I also thought that I would have to meet someone in the industry, because they would have a better understanding of the amount of time that I would be away from home. It's funny how now that I've found the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, I do everything I can to be home with her as much as possible.
In the end, I met a woman who works for my company. Her mother also has worked for my company for nearly 30 years, so my wife has literally grown up in the airline business. We all understand what the job entails and celebrate the time we are together. Every time we come home, it's a wonderful reunion! I have truly been blessed with an amazing wife and an incredible mother-in-law. I have had the pleasure of flying with each of them and they are so good at what they do. It doesn't get much better than that!
The next great accomplishment since I last wrote here, is that I upgraded to the newest airplane in our fleet, the Boeing 787. Since 2010, my last entry, I went back to flying the Boeing 757 & 767. I flew that for another 2 1/2 years and was awarded the 787 late last year. I went to training shortly after returning from my honeymoon. I have to say, the 787 is the most remarkable airplane have ever flown. It's so incredibly advanced compared to anything that has come before it. While it had a rocky early life, Boeing really took the time to get it right. Innovation and advancement in any industry carries some risk, but it also carries some reward. In the case of the 787, the rewards have certainly outweighed the risks. As the airplane gets more time under it's belt, it gets better and better! I flew the Airbus A320 for a couple of years, and I loved it! (repeat...I loved it and am not bashing it). Part of the enjoyment of flying the Airbus, was the feeling that I beat the airplane and didn't let it beat me. It was my first fly-by-wire jet and the first aircraft I had ever flown with a side-stick controller. Being a tech lover, I enjoyed it a lot. Airbus did so much to make the airplane as automated as possible, but you still had to work to know what it was going to do, when it was going to do it, and why it was doing it again. With the 787, Boeing got the mix of technology, automation and innovation just right. Everything works so well together! Having flown so many varieties of airplanes, I had a pretty big list of things I wished would be fixed on any new type of aircraft. Boeing fixed almost all of them, and even did things I never thought I would want and really can't live without! I don't know how I'm going to ever go back to the 737 as a Captain after flying the 787! The 787 has been a "Dream" come true.
While I can't guarantee I will write frequently, I will do my best to be as entertaining and factual as possible when I do. As I am now flying the 787, I will try to write as much as I can about some of the advancements I have seen on it and how they make my job so much better and easier. Please forgive the grammatical, spelling and composition errors. It's been a long time since I've taken a writing class and at times I post before doing a good job of editing. Overall, I hope you enjoy what I have to say. Keep the Blue Side Up!
Cheers,
Dan
