EVEN WHEN THE CHANCE LIES IN THE OTHER HEMISPHERE By Fred Zhang “Hampton Roads Traffic, Cherokee 6577W, Solo, taking off Runway 28, Hampton Road.” Never have I ever dreamed that the day was going to come as quickly as it did. June 22nd, 2018, marked my first solo. My pursue of my dream in aviation was not as easy as others’. For one thing, I am not a US citizen; I am here on a Student Visa. For another, I did not grow up in an English-speaking country. Regardless, there I was, flying solo in the sky for the first time ever, without a trace of fear, for I knew the sky was truly my home. Unlike many other young aviators, I did not grow up with a love of aviation in mind. In fact, I only discovered the wonder of aviation three years ago, when I was in seventh grade. I was back at home in China at that time, getting a good grade on every test was the only thing I was concerned about before the love of aviation popped up. But, once it did, it took hold of me so strongly that I feel the only thing I want to do is fly. I started to learn aviation more passionately than I have ever done with any other of my hobbies. Flight simulators became my greatest source of happiness. With simulators, I could practice what I learned. I became famous in my school because of my obsession with aviation. I related everything to aviation, so much that it became annoying to some extent. Soon, I realized flying behind a screen and keyboard was not enough for me; I needed to take flying to the actual
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world. This realization led me to the most important and the best decision I have made in my entire life, to conquer the language barrier and go to a place where the sky is welcoming. Coming to the United States was the obvious decision to make. My English skill was limited; I could not even communicate with others in English, let alone talk to ATC over the radio. But, I was determined. I practiced talking to people in English, I listened to audiobooks and ATC recordings in English when I was free, I read books in English when I could. My English improved so much in the course of less than a year that people around me were amazed, all thanks to my love of aviation. About a year had passed since I started pursuing aviation. I found the courage to tell my parents that I thought I was ready to fly. This changed their view of my love of aviation a little. In the past, they took all my efforts as something like a joke; they thought it was one of those things that a child loves for a short period of time, then forgets it completely. The conversation made them think, this is probably something, but is still far from an actual dream. They had doubted my ability to fly, for a good reason (I myself was not a hundred percent convinced that I could). I had never been in a piston engine plane before; plus, who knew how accurate flight simulators were. But,
