University Daily Kansan
Tuesday, October 2, 1979
7
KU students learn to fly
By JENNIFER HOLT
Staff Reporter
It all started with Icarus, who, according to Greek mythology, ftoo close to the sun with his wings of wax and plunged to his death in the sea.
Thousands of years later, Oville and Wilbar Wright had much better luck. And today, whether they are at the Lawrence High School or in downtown, many KU students will learn to fly.
"It's something I've always wanted to do. I give Gilberto Berti a basketball junior. I give it to him and now I'm going to take my time getting the license. I want to finish lessons by this time."
Some students enroll in the Lawrence Flight School for a career in flying while others, like Brito, want just to learn to fly, according to Gordon Bearss, a flight in-
Nearly 50 percent of the flight school's students are KU students.
beginning of the year to finish up by Christmas, 'he said,' or start in January to take care of her family. He qualified so they can fly their plane."
Bearsrs said it took about 65 hours to get a pilot's license.
money they have," he said. "I've had students finish in 35 hours and some who have taken more than 100 hours. It matters to me how long it takes them as long as possible."
William Lewis, Alton, III. ill treatm, hopes to finish the program before Christmas. He started taking lessons at home before he came to school this fall, he said.
"I've always been interested in flying and I can't want to get the license," he said. "I have about 20 to 25 total flipping hours to go
before I finish, and whether I get the license before Christmas will depend on the weather."
Steve Mikinski, Kansas City, Kan., senior said, "I don't intend to on fly in a career; I just want to fly for pleasure." he said.
Mikinski said his brother and a friend, who is a Kansas City flight instructor, first interested him in flying.
Flight school students must rent an airplane for one or two hours and hire an instructor for lessons.
The cheapest airplane rents for $22 an hour on a plan called wired cost, which pays for the gas and maintenance of a premium plane like the Cessna 125 rent for $8 an hour. The instructor charges $12 an hour.
To get a private license, one must fly approximately 20 hours with an instructor, 15 hours alone and take written, oral and computer training from the Federal Aviation Administration
The fee for the PAA examiner if $40, and the flying test may take as long as an hour, a Municipal Airport employee says.
Getting a commercial license is next. The pilot must be tested to see if he can fly solely by instruments and control more than one engine
Students and instructors said flying was easier to learn than most people thought.
“It’s a lot like driving a motorcycle,” Bearss said. “It’s not the difficulty, but putting all together in one concept that throws people. New students are usually nervous when they start. Well, I’ve never one whom I didn’t think could learn to fly.”
Brito said, "Flying is so different from anything I've ever done before that there is no way I can compare it to anything."
Bearss said that although many people
"Women may be slower in some cases because they're not as aggressive," he said. "Most men are brought up with electronics, with electrical trains. Then they become mechanics or hold jobs of that sort when they're older, but girls frequently are brought up with dolls and toys."
thought women had a more difficult time learning, each case was different.
He said he thought women were more dexterous and coordinated.
Vicki Rubin, Prairie Village freshman,
rents an airplane at least once a week
She said she started flying in the summer of 1978 but did not get her license for eight months because she was not old enough.
"My dad always has flown a plane, and seen that summer he asked me I wanted to travel. He told me to take me about eight months to get the license. That was on my 12th birthday, and we didn't have a car."
"The first time I soiled the most memorable," she said. "I was really nervous and kept getting on the mike to the control tower to talk to them."
She said she got lost once on a cross-country flight by forgetting to reset her commass over the Ozark mountains.
She then had to fly around in circles until the radar could set her on the right course again.
Lewis said his favorite flight "was the time I faint at sunset at 3,400 feet and saw the sun reflect off the St. Louis Arch. It was a beautiful sight; the air was clear and nice."
Both students said they weren't afraid of crashing.
It really depends on the plane. "Lewis said, 'but I feel I can handle any situation. It might get a little worried daired a 60 degree bit other than that I would be confident.'
Pre-flight check
Season ticket sales down
Football season ticket sales apparently are the lowest they have been in the last six years, preliminary figures released by the KU athletic department viewed, showed.
Although the final totals are not in yet, Nancy Welsh, ticket manager, said approximately 20,000 public, faculty/staff and alumni came to campus for the season of 22,268 season tickets were sold last year.
Gilberto Brito, Wichita junior, checks the wing flans before his second living lesson at the Lawrence Municipal Airnort
Because of the interest shown by students since last Saturday's game, the athletic department decided yesterday to offer
"I was boping that we would sell at least 10,000 student season tickets this year, but we sold only 7,000," Welsh said. "However I still bought the student tickets after last Saturday's game."
season tickets to students for the remaining four games. The tickets to the Webb auditorium and the ticket office in Allen Field House. The price of a student season ticket at the beginning of the season.
Welsh said nearly 13,000 public and faculty/staff season tickets were sold this year. A total of 13,566 were sold last year.
Welsh said she thought the lower demand for tickets this year was caused by the performance of last year's football team plus other influences such as inflation.
Season ticket sales this year look as if they will be the lowest since 1973 when only 20,432 season tickets were sold. The highest total in season tickets was 1976 when 24,588 season tickets were sold.
The great values come out at night at KING+Jeans.