by Dave Weiman
Published in Midwest Flyer – June/July 2020 issue
By now, we have all sheltered in our homes and maintained our social distancing to the point we are no longer social; worn our facemasks whenever in public so no one knows who we are and vice versa: and washed our hands for at least 20 seconds 20 times a day. Unfortunately, our country and the world has had some major losses in life, either directly or indirectly due to the Coronavirus Pandemic; job losses; and a disruption in life in general.
Aviation-wise, the airline industry has taken the greatest hit. There are less people flying commercially, but air cargo companies, such as UPS and FedEx, are going strong! Fortunately, general aviation seems to be doing considerably better with lower fuel prices, and an increase in demand for air charter. Flight training is experiencing some temporary challenges, requiring flight schools to do more online instruction and use flight simulators more than usual, but this will change soon as more flight schools begin testing for the virus, or we get a vaccine.
My heart goes out to those young, aspiring aviators, hoping to become airline pilots, thinking they were born at the best time in recent history, which they were. While those dreams may have been delayed, I believe new dreams will come true in gratifying careers in general aviation. I also see a boom in general aviation aircraft sales and maintenance coming soon, as more and more people realize they can fly themselves faster with less hassle than on the airlines.
General aviation events have also taken a big hit with cancellations and postponements. Spring is usually the busiest time of the year for airport conferences, halls of fame banquets, pilot seminars, and the beginning of the fly-in and airshow season. All of that changed due to the pandemic, but hopefully we will get back on track with all of them before too long. Until then, stay well and fly GA!
