I consider myself a “midlife flyer,” with apologies to Mark Kolber, who owns the service mark and domain for Midlife Flight, and who uses that moniker himself. My interest in flying began 34 years ago, when I took a ground school course as a physics elective in college and passed the FAA written exam for Private Pilot. That was in 1975, My college roommate at the time was taking flying lessons, too. However, one problem prevented me from taking my desires further. I’ve been a Type 1 diabetic since 1968, and the FAA did not allow anyone who took insulin to obtain the required medical certificate.
I tried to find out from the FAA if it was thought that insulin might be allowed anytime, soon, or if I should just give up home. I was told they felt that at some point insulin might be allowed, provided certain conditions were met, but that I may as well forget about it. The FAA moves slowly with such matters. It wasn’t until late 1996 that the FAA changed the policy to allow those who took insulin to be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Marriage, kids, home, and family life took all my resources for some time. But, after the kids were grown and gone, and the FAA policy change that took place, I wanted to once again pursue my dream… after convincing my wife and getting her approval, of course. So, in 2004, I decided to take the first step for someone in my position, and see if I could get through the process of securing a third class medical certificate.
It took 10 months to get a medical certificate, something that a non-diabetic could get the same day they saw an Aviation Medical Examiner. I wanted to make sure I had the certificate before I started lessons, as you have to have one before you can solo.
So, with my fresh medical certificate in hand, I searched for flight instructors. It seems that flight instructors are not as plentiful and available as they once were. I couldn’t find one available at the major airport that was close by, but I found one that I liked at an uncontrolled field about 30 to 45 minutes from my home.