Learning on Grass

Posted on Tue Jul 16th, 2013 @ 9:28pm by Ensign Maximillian Cobyassa PhD & Ensign George Ward

2,053 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 2 - Whispers in the Clouds
Location: Holodeck two
Timeline: Day 2 - 0800

ON:

George had finished the pre-flight on the Beechcraft Model 17 Staggerwing. This was a special version that mirrored one he had actually flown back on Earth. While it wasn't an original, it had the same unique lines as well as a few updated improvements, like a turboprop engine and better cockpit instrumentation. Stashing the clipboard in it's cubby, Just as he was about to start the engine, the commpanel beeped through.

"Ensign Cobyassa to Ensign Ward"

"This is George, go ahead. "

"Someone recommended that I speak to you about possibly getting some additional piloting training."

"Listen Alphabet. I don't want to be rude, but I spend all day training my people on stuff they should have already learned at the academy or during training. Not to mention, you now want me to do it on my off time. I was about to take a joyride to clear my head. You wanna come along, I have no problem with that. Might even let you take the stick for a few, but you want shuttle training. Sign the board. More than happy to get you up to spec on my duty time. Computer, unlock holodeck doors for the next 15 seconds."

Max listened the the man's little rant, a small frown appearing on his brow. Who did this ensign think he was? If that was the way he wanted to play it. Giving a little shrug he tapped his comm badge again to continue the conversation.

"Then could you please direct me to where I might find the 'board' then please? It is definitely shuttle training that I desire. I thought a couple hour brush up training might be sufficient, but upon further reflection, I think perhaps the full 2 week, 72 hour re-training course might better suit my needs."

"Well you got lucky. Get in and I'll let you take the stick. We can see just how polished your skills are. Since I'll be training you anyway, might as well get started.

As Max entered the holodeck, it was no docking bay, cargo bay or space port that he boarded, it was a large field of green. A field of grass close to kilometer long divided neatly in the center by a grey flat slab of concrete, painting with markings on the end. At one end of this line, Max's eye was drawn to the bright yellow craft located there. Coming straight out of some antique historical holonovel, Max was flabbergasted by the machine. Looking like it was made out of paper mache, the craft didn't seem to have any visible armaments with its only form of electronics a small pair of antennae on top. To add to his confusion, instead of being prepped for launch, or even level, the craft was pointed downwards towards the earth.

"Ummm.. what is that?" Max asked politely.

"A Beechcraft Staggerwing. A late model biplane. Usually used by rich folks back in the 20th century."

Max looked it over, not too impressed, "20th century?! Could they even fly back then?" if that was what the rich used, he was afraid to see what the poor used.

"I didn't mean to get snotty. It's just that this is the first time I've had to do anything remotely fun on my time off. " He stuck out his hand. "Call me George."

Max shook the man's hand firmly, "Good to meet you George. I'm Max. Hasn't the ship just been out of port a couple of days? But more importantly, please tell me we aren't getting into that thing."

"It was two weeks of shuttles just to get here. As for the plane....two things. If you can't fly this at 320 kph.....you aren't flying a metric ton of shuttle at 5 million kph. At least anywhere around me. Two....this is the holodeck.....what are you afraid of? I promise, you won't die. Make up your mind. Either get in the cockpit with me and maybe learn a something or stop spoiling my time off and my view. " George turned and started for the door. Swinging it open, he moved to climb in.

"320 what? You've lost me a bit. Sorry for being a party pooper on your time off. Maybe I'll just be a passive observer this time through and let you fly this... plane."

To be honest Max wasn't very convinced this thing could fly. It looked more like a decoration then anything that might be able to achieve orbit. As Max crawled into the plane after George he noticed that all the seats seemed to be facing the wide back end of the plane. Curious, he commented on it.

"Is there a reason all the seats are facing the back of the plane? Is it to better enjoy the view?"

"Yeah, that's the direction we'll be flying. The engine in this is what's called a tractor rather than a pusher. Pushers are more like a thruster. There are some planes that have pusher engines, but in this day and age they were rare. This plane is very comfortable. Wide plush seats. Take one."

George fiddled with the controls. The whine of the starter could be heard as it spun the propeller. As the motor coughed and exploded to life, he watched Max squirm. This wasn't exactly a modern ship. He turned on a set of noise cancelling headphones and handed one to Max. "The engine will settle in as she warms up." It took about 30 second for the smoke to clear, oil burning off the cylinders of the radial engine. The engine was now a thrumming steadily. Releasing the brake, the craft started rolling. As they hit the tarmac, George throttled up,the plane rumbling along as the 750hp engine filled the cabin with it's throaty roar and power. Soon the tail lifted, George eased back on the stick and they were airborne.

Max was still wondering why 20th century liked to fly their crafts backwards when the engine explosion startled him back to his senses. He was sure there was something terribly wrong with this craft, at any moment George would hit a button, the craft would stop and George would tell him this had just been a prank on him for interrupting his private time. But judging by George's calm reaction to all this, an even scarier thought formed in Max's mind.. this was all normal. As Max felt his stomach lurch as the craft lept into the sky he watched as the green grass fell away beneath them. He wondered if he was going to have need of his emergency protocol for this flight.

"Yeah I think I know what you're thinking, but you'll be fine. This aircraft has a great safety record, it just not what you're used to. Take a look around, the view in the thing is great. Lake Glenville is coming up on the right. The leaves will be changing to fall colors about now. Flying a shuttle can be a very sterile experience. I get in touch with this aircraft AND the world around me at the same time. It's not all flying by at thousands of kilometers per hour. Yeah there are times I like that. But this is visceral and real to me." George leveled off at 500 meters and throttle back a touch. The plane and engine settling it a very steady rhythm.

"I have a hard time picturing something this noisy and shaky as sterile."

Knowing that this was one of the man's preferred past times and not wanting to be too much of a downer, Max tried changing the subject a bit, "So what got you interested in all this old style flying?"

"As a boy, I was always interested in the hair on fire, pushed against the seat modern flying. There was a man that ran a small airstrip nearby and have a museum of sorts. He collected and serviced aircraft. I was lucky enough to learn from him. In this era of instant gratification and automation, it was a change from the norm to have to literally know the vehicle in and out. You either do the maintenance on the craft or it will bite you. Take this Model 17 were in. I know every square centimeter, linkage, bolt, and mechanism on her. You can feel exactly what the craft is doing. It will telegraph every move if you're listening and paying attention. In fact, I don't allow myself to get sloppy. I literally do the maintenance even on this bird. While the failsafes are in place for safety reasons, I have the holodeck do a realistic wear and tear on this plane. People get sloppy. Sloppy leads to failure. Now, If you want to learn to be a REAL pilot instead of a console tapper. get ready to grab the controls."

"Knowing every inch of this thing, well that's definitely dedication. But I understand your desire to want to know more about your passion." Max felt like he understood George a little more; that feeling was something he could very easily relate to, "Its like a thirst that can never be quenched no matter much you try to take in. Always hungering to know more. You couldn't imagine how many hours I spent in the holosuite.." Max's eyes lit up as he started talking. As he looked over at his flying partner, he realized that he was starting to get carried away again.. today wasn't about him, this was George's time off. Reigning in his enthusiasm, he brought the conversation back on topic.

"So did you make any kind of interesting discoveries when you took it all apart?"

"I discovered I prefer mechanical backups when possible. Makes a more logical progression in my mind. You had your chance Max, now it's time to be the passenger." George pulled the throttle wide open and reset the mixture. The enginer picking up speed as the plane did. Nosing over, the surface of the nearby lake came up to meet them rapidly. George loved it as it made the sensation of speed that much more enhanced. He rode the dense layer of air near the flat surface of water before pulling up into a half loop, pulling a roll and finishing the Immelman turn. Throttling the plane down to a more luxurious pace, he turned to Max and said, "now are your taking the controls and learning to fly or should I continue?"

"Alright alright." Max said taking the wheel. He had been very close to losing his seating with that last maneuver, and was happy to take over control to simply prevent George from doing that maneuver again.

The first thing he noticed was how much the wheel shook and vibrated in his hand. It took a little bit of effort simply to hold it steady. it felt like the plane was silently fighting him. He felt like asking if this was normal or not, but based on how George hadn't said anything, Max could only assume this was normal.

Holding the plane steady for a few moments as he got used to the feedback, he took a moment to look around at his surroundings. Everything here felt so unfamiliar to him. Spending his entire life in a concrete and plasti-steel jungle, this big open space of blues and greens just felt weird. The peaceful lake they were flying over had a few strange creatures floating on top. They were too big to be fish, and while they looked like they might be avian by nature, they didn't look to be perched to anything.

"What are those?" Max asked, pointing towards the creatures.

"Birds. They like to eat fish when they aren't flying."

Turning the plane towards the ducks he inquired, "Are they target practice for the big spinning blade?"

"Only if you feel like an unpowered landing and then helping me change out the spinning blade after you destroy it. Plus I don't really feel like wearing duck innards."

"I didn't kn.. " Max began.

"Computer, pause simulation." All the vibration, noise and smells faded. "Max, I can teach you to pilot whatever you want. What you have to decide is, what kind of pilot do you want to be? Someone competent enough to pass the test, or someone that knows what to do when things don't go right."

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