130. The Unintended Cessna 152 Camping Trip
6/11/202629 min
In Episode 130 of I Learned About Flying From That, host Carl Valeri sits down with airline pilot and aviation attorney Chris Pezalla to recount a marathon time-building flight that quickly turned into a damp, late-night lesson in aeronautical decision-making.
Twenty years ago, a 19-year-old Chris and a friend rented a Cessna 152 to fly from Daytona Beach down to Key West. What started as a straightforward opportunity to build cross-country flight time evolved into a grueling ordeal on the journey home.
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsCarl Valeri· Host0:00
[upbeat music] A routine instrument instructional flight turns into a lesson on flight planning and how to camp in your airplane. Welcome to episode 130 of I Learned About Flying From That, sponsored by Avemco Insurance. My name is Carl Valeri, and joining me today is Chris Pizzala to talk about his harrowing experience during an instrument flight that also turned into an unintended camping trip. [laughs] Hey, Chris, welcome to the podcast.
Chris Pizzala· Guest0:34
Hey, Carl. Uh, great to be here, and, uh, great not to be sleeping in an airplane today. So, uh, we're doing well.
Carl Valeri· Host0:40
Well, you know, Chris, we're gonna get that- to that in, in a minute, but, uh, you know, one thing that I always love to hear before we get started is, uh, the person's background in aviation. First of all, how you got into aviation, and I know this, this incident happened a while ago, uh, but, uh, also what you do in aviation today.
Chris Pizzala· Guest0:57
Uh, yes, so, uh, despite that today, of course, I, I work as an airline pilot. I do long haul, uh, where we have bunks on the plane, so that's, that's been a huge improvement. Uh, but, uh, uh, you know, uh, 20 years ago I was a flight instructor, and that, uh, followed, uh, shortly after learning to fly in high school. I think I was about 15 when I started flying lessons, soloed when I was 16, uh, and then became an instructor when I was 18, about to turn 19. So I got a, a pretty early start, and it's good and bad. You get, um, to build up these skills at a young age when it's a really great time to build skills.