Having grown up listening to his grandfather and father talk about their aviation experiences, Brendan Grahn, EAA 1302295, is no stranger to the topic of flying.
In spite of that early exposure, he wasn’t interested in flying until recently. Brendan said he attributes his newfound passion of flying to his love of reading about history, particularly the World War II era.
Brendan soloed on April 14 in a 1969 Piper Cherokee on a beautiful sunny day with little wind at the Burlington International Airport in Vermont.
“The feeling was like nothing else, especially as I was on final for my last of three landings,” Brendan said. “My anxiety before taking off quickly faded away as I focused in on the task at hand and relied on the great instruction I had leading up to that point.”
Brendan has his eyes set on the horizon and hopes to earn his private pilot certificate by fall.
“From there, I hope to gain additional ratings/endorsements and keep flying for fun,” Brendan said. “As for a career, I am not ruling out any options!”
Brendan and his father, Doug, are looking forward to coming to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2019 and looking for Brendan’s grandfather’s name on the EAA Memorial Wall. Brendan and Doug already have their tickets bought and a flight on the B-17 booked!
Have you reached a milestone recently? Passed a checkride, given your first or hundredth Young Eagle flight, flown your homebuilt for the first time? Tell us about it at editorial@eaa.org.