Whats the central idea of this passage
at some point in their lives, certain people have a desire to fly—they want to experience the exhilaration of taking control of an airplane and soaring through the sky. for me, daryl estevez, that desire has been with me my whole life. i grew up surrounded by pilots. my grandfather was an army fighter pilot in the korean war, and three of my uncles fly airplanes for a living. i got hooked on planes at a young age and dreamed of becoming a pilot. in an officer’s training program in college, i learned i would not be eligible to fly for the military because of problems with my eyesight, but i was determined to fulfill my dream anyway.
earning a pilot’s license is not a simple process. i wanted to earn a private pilot’s license so that i would be able to fly small airplanes all over the world. to get this type of license, student pilots must complete at least 40 hours of training, practice flying with a flight instructor in numerous circumstances—such as at night and in various weather conditions—and practice flying an airplane solo for at least 10 hours.
even though my vision did not meet the stringent requirements of the military, i met the criteria to become a private pilot, and my dream came true in 2004 when i earned my license to fly. since then i have flown from coast to coast in the united states, and it’s everything i imagined it would be and more. there is nothing more thrilling than having the freedom to travel wherever i want. in 2007, i realized i wanted to other people follow their passion for flight, too, and that’s when i earned another license—as a flight instructor.
i truly enjoy guiding students as they build that foundation—from teaching them the mechanics of how a plane works to them master the rules of flight. it is paramount that pilots develop a solid foundation of aeronautical knowledge before they ever hit the runway. the federal aviation administration actually requires it. just like driver’s education classes prepare students to be skilled and safe on the road, ground school classes teach pilots to be skilled and safe in the sky.
unfortunately, there are hundreds of deaths every year due to pilot error. but student pilots who take their training seriously will understand the value of all those hours of preparation and will learn to operate an airplane safely from takeoff to touchdown. then, like i did that first time i climbed above the clouds, they will know the thrill of flight.