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Barbara (26, Salerno), Simone (20, Bergamo), Andrea (25, Vicenza) and Luca (20, Cesena), are four ATO student pilots who, despite having obtained the first PPL license for only 8 months, have already a lot to tell.


Andrea GARAVELLO, Simone MARINI, Barbara CAPUTO, Luca MARINELLI

United by their passion for the world of aviation from a very early age, they joined the PPL 19 course - where, moreover, they met - and where a beautiful professional and non-professional friendship began, and then continued, always together, in the ATPL 16 course which started this May.

In February 2021 they BRILLIANTLY PASSED the PPL practical exam and, with the arrival of the license, the first PLANNINGs began which saw them navigate to always new and stimulating destinations.

The CREW of the scheduled flights? Most of the time, just made up of the four of them!!

In fact, there were several "routine" flights carried out by this group of young people, towards the most popular destinations among the students. Then the idea of ​​a different, more tempting, more satisfying flight, made a reality thanks to their "hunger" to fly.

An idea "born as a joke" as the students tell us, then concretized with the presentation of an accurate project at the ATOs HEAD OF TRAINING.

Once concluded the final details of the flight, the TEAM, made up of Barbara, Simone, Andrea and Luca, left on board of the CESSNA 182 (4-seat aircraft) for a CROSS COUNTRY that involved Airports scattered around Italy, to "appreciate" , as the boys reveal to us, “the many beauties of our territory”.

An incredible journey, from North to South, which saw them as protagonists of the skies for 4 days and where, thanks to the fair and planned division of this trip, each of them have been able to savor a section of this adventure that we are sure, they will never forget.

We decided to enter in the real heart of this journey, meeting the young students and asking them directly the details of this extraordinary mission from a professional, but also and above all human point of view.


 LIBC Aeroporto Pitagora Crotone CalabriaLIBC Aeroporto Pitagora Crotone Calabria


HOW DID THE IDEA OF ​​THIS TRIP COME ABOUT?

The idea was born just talking, a bit for fun, about the projects we had on our hour buildings. But then we said to ourselves “why don’t we really try it?”

From that moment we began to develop the idea of ​​an itinerary that could be educational and fun at the same time, to test us as pilots.

So, we began to think about all the possible destinations for our cross-country flight which is necessary for obtaining the CPL license. In fact, the pilot must make a flight in three different airports during the day, at a distance in the air equal to or greater than 300 nautical miles.

If done on a two-seater plane, one pilot flies on the way out and the other on the way back so, adding the distances, you can choose destinations for a range of 300 miles instead of 150 which, however, still seemed too short for all us.

We wanted something more, to go beyond the now well-known regions, to test ourselves and our skills and what we learned during the first year of training.

Then love at first sight… Fresh off the qualification on the school's complex planes, which can accommodate 4 people on board, we decided to add up our 4 missions that would have given us a range of 600 nautical miles (about 1100km).

The choice inevitably fell on the I-ELLY, the school's Cessna 182Q, a real guarantee in terms of cruising performance, autonomy and, above all, payload that makes it one of the best touring aircraft ever built.

The enthusiasm was maximum, we all agreed ... we wanted to do it before the end of the summer, when the study wouldn’t have stolen most of our time in view of the ATPL exams.

HOW LONG DID IT TAKE TO PLAN THIS FLIGHT?

Planning is an essential part of a flight and, as we learned during the training, nothing must be left to chance.

The school requires high standards from us and to respect these standards it is necessary to do everything with the utmost professionalism, the same that will be required by us in our career.

It was undoubtedly the most complicated part, to organize such a flight you don’t need only the operational aspect but also the whole outline. For example, requesting estimates for taxes and fuel, and sending parking reservations with the necessary information and documentation of all the planned airports.

Obviously one day for this flight was not enough, and not event two. The perfect would have been four 4 days, but taking a plane away for so long with the frequency with which the school flies was infeasible.

Therefore, we opted for the end of August when the flight school was closed but the MAINTAINANCE of the school was open so that they could open the hangar for us and check the plane before the flight.

To plan all of this we divided the “homework”: there was the one who took care of contacting certain airports, another one who made sure that airports had all the necessary services trying not spend too much on landing fees, and the last ones who were in charge of selecting and booking hotels and means of transport to reach them.

The only thing that was done individually were the planning of the individual sections (routes, times and altitudes) that each one carried out independently.

WAS THERE A STRATEGIC CHOICE FOR THE SELECTION OF THE VARIOUS DESTINATIONS?

Some of us lacked the license with the English certification and therefore we decided to opt for a tour of the peninsula from north to south.

A unique opportunity to appreciate the many beauties of our territory.

Each airport had to comply with specific characteristics: they all had to be at a certain distances to satisfy the mission requirements, they had to have the possibility of refueling, low fuel costs and availability of parking or hangar at the airport for the night.

After meeting several times and following careful evaluations, our final choice fell on the following airports: Valbrembo - Elba Island - L'Aquila - Reggio Calabria - Palermo - Crotone - Pescara - Venice - Valbrembo.


LIRN Aeroporto di Napoli Capodichino Napoli Campania


HOW DID YOU DIVIDED THE ROUTES?

Let's say that there were no disputes regarding the choice of routes, fortunately we all agreed on which to do, each chose a different route from others.

To begin was Luca who has flown from Valbrembo to L'Aquila passing through the island of Elba, the second instead Simone who landed from Aquila, passing through Reggio Calabria and subsequently in Palermo, the third was made by Andrea who landed in Crotone from Palermo, then diverted to Naples due to the weather. The lap was closed by Barbara who brought the plane home from Capodichino, stopping again at L'Aquila for refueling.

ARE YOU ALREADY THINKING ABOUT ANOTHER FLIGHT OF THIS KIND?

The last weekend we went to Cannes in France with 2 planes, as the first flight abroad. But we are not going to stop, we want to go even further, as we believe that the best way to experience is to go away from home to get to know different environments and be catapulted into new or complicated situations which we are sure we will manage always better thanks to training received.

TELL US HOW IT WAS BOTH FROM A PILOT AND PERSONALLY POINT OF VIEW.

From the point of view as pilots it was one of the most beautiful flights made so far as we had to deal with unseen scenarios, new airports and a different climate from what we are used to in our area. The most satisfying thing, however, was being able to complete the flight safely despite the fact that there were numerous variables that changed the plans in progress. Above all, landing in international airports such as Naples was very rewarding and at the same time challenging. The teamwork we did to achieve the common goal, which is to complete each mission in safety, was fundamental.

Also, it was unique to see such a long flight that took place within 8 months of earning the PPL.

Understanding how to get in touch with the airports, trying to organize the whole route detail by detail, staying within the set times and finally trying to solve the problems related to the weather have been fundamental aspects for our growth. All this was certainly not thanks to just one person but is the result of teamwork driven by passion and the desire to get involved. Finally, the school also played a central role with the knowledge transmitted by our instructors, which proved to be the most useful tools for completing the tour of Italy.

From a personal point of view it was a unique experience, we had a lot of fun, we visited and flew over beautiful places from the blue beaches to the Apennines. During the stops we had the opportunity to visit the historical beauties of the area and to appreciate the local cuisine. It was unique to be around Italy with an airplane piloted by us, we bonded even more as a group and we are sure that this experience will remain with us forever.

WHAT ARE YOUR NEXT GOALS?

SIMONEMy next goals are first of all to finish quickly my studies in cantor air and get the ATPL license, so that I can join an airline and make my dream job come true. Later as another experience I would also like to be able to become part of the board of directors of an airline, as well as fly for it, in order to achieve a general and complete vision of what is behind its organization at an administrative and operational level. Finally, as another experience, I would also like to be able to bring my contribution, to aircraft manufacturers, in the development and creation of aircraft intended to accompany the progress of commercial aviation of the future.

LUCA: My goal for the moment is to complete the exams of the ATPL in the shortest time and to achieve them with an excellent average and then complete the rest of the flight part. Once I have my license I would like to go in a line company, maybe one day change scenery and fly like Bush Pilot for some company around the world.

Another thing I would like to do as soon as I will start working is to obtain the aerobatic flight license and improve myself more and more as a pilot, coming to compete in some discipline. The ideal would be tomorrow to have an airplane of my own or in company with someone else to have fun during the free weekends.

ANDREA:The next goals are certainly to complete the ATPL exams and the course of study in the best way. In order to be fully ready when I enter the world of commercial aviation. In the short term, I would like to continue to increase the flight experience by putting myself outhere in always different and unusual scenarios. In the long-term future, I aim to become a commander within an airline and perhaps, in addition to the part flown, to carry out other tasks within the same, such as: instructor, examiner or perhaps in the commercial area.

BARBARAMy next goal is to finish the ATPL exams and continue with the training to be one step closer to my dream of becoming an airline pilot.

Guys, we are sure that this ADVENTURE has given you the right energy to proceed in the best way possible and, with the hope that you will never lose this "APPETITE FOR FLIGHT", we wish you a GOOD LUCK for all the steps that will come!!


CANTOR AIR STAFF

FLY AS YOU TRAIN, TRAIN AS YOU FLY

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