Renee and I thought Jake was done flying after that first landing but he ended up doing a few more up and downs after that. We ran an errand so we missed those, but the timing worked out perfectly beacuse he landed for the final time right as we finished, giving me a chance to catch him leaving the plane.

I didn’t have to ask him how the flight went…that smile told me everything I needed to know.

I love this shot for so many reasons. I took it a few seconds after that last overhead shot of Jake. He’s the dark speck visible in the upper third of the frame here, still flying perpindicular to and away from the runway. I watched Renee as she watched Jake. I caught several frames of this particular moment but I like this one the best because it’s nearly the last one in the series. The size of the plane in the photo and Renee’s stance remind me that she watched him fly away as long as she could. What a great moment for all of us.

I’ve learned enough about general aviation (and flight schools) to know that scheduled departure times are mere suggestions. The sunrise provided some amazing light, so I captured some other images while we waited.

What a view! We’ve got the perfect spot, with a perfect sunrise to boot.

Jake told us about a great spot that sits right alongside the main runway, which pretty much let us get as close as we could without getting in trouble. Jake and his buddies have used this for watching their other buddies take off and land. Apparently it’s all good, just as long as you don’t flash posters to judge the landings–Jake speaks from experience on that.

And off he goes. I missed the exposure on this frame, but some creative processing let me deal with the blown out highlights in a creative way, I think. And, if you look closely, it shows the landing gear being retracted. Another first for Jake–retractable gear.

That’s a proud mom!

Jake was scheduled to have his first flight in the twin-engine Piper Seminole bright and early this morning, so Renee and I got up early and headed down to BG to watch. He had called us earlier (at about 5:45 AM!) to make sure we were awake and getting ready. That’s a twist in roles!

Jake returned toward the airport 30-40 minutes later, initially flying over the field before turning into the pattern. We had a great view of his flyover, too, as his path went directly overhead.

Wheels down!

Jake debriefed us in the parking lot of the Flight Center afterwards. I don’t think he stopped smiling the entire time. I didn’t capture it in an image, but a fun moment happened right after I took this photo. A buddy of Jake’s was walking into the Flight Center and saw Jake in the parking lot. Apparently knowing Jake had just had his first flight in the twin engine, he asked Jake how the landings went. Jake replied with a simple “great,” to which his buddy responded with an equally as simple “bull shit!”.

This is not Jake (he’d say ‘obviously, it’s a single engine plane....’). I took this and a few other shots of the first flight of the day to dial in my settings. I never got the shutter speed right (frozen props!), but was mostly happy with everything else. This first flight headed West on takeoff, giving a perfect view of the sunrise. I’m not sure why, but the airport changed direction on the runway right after this (Jake departed to the East a few minutes later).

We didn’t have to wait long. Jake was probably the third or fourth pilot to depart. We watched as he manevered into line, had his run up, and turned to face East on the runway. I was so excited for him–he’s been looking forward to flying a twin engine plane since the moment he earned his pilot’s license. And I was so happy to have captured this particular frame, with the front wheel up and the rear wheels still on the ground.

I can only imagine the excitement he’s feeling in this second. It might match the pride and absolute joy I’m feeling in the same second.

Jake was on final approach a few minutes later, heading in for his first landing in a multi-engine plane.