Young Eagles Pilot Information

Don Grondin

Pilot Bio

I am an instrument rated private pilot with 2,200 hours total flight time that I have accumulated since beginning flight training in 1988. I have additional ratings to pilot sea planes and gliders as well as a tail-wheel endorsement, and I’ve taken dual instruction in basic aerobatic maneuvers. I’ve no interest in performing aerobatics but the instruction in spins, rolls, loops and inverted flight was undertaken to increase confidence and overall command of the airplane. I am a Young Eagle Leader in the EAA Young Eagle program.

As a child, I was always fascinated with flight. My Dad would often take me out to the two local airports in Orange County California where I grew up and we would lean on the perimeter chain link fence and watch Cessnas and Pipers performing take off and landing maneuvers for hours at a time. This was in the 1960’s when John Wayne/Orange County airport was just a small general aviation airport without commercial service and before the other airport, Meadowlark, was replaced with commercial development. I was fortunate to be able to visit Meadowlark in a rented Cessna soon after getting my private pilot license a while before it became a shopping mall.

My parents could not afford to provide me with flight lessons and so I was content to read non-fiction accounts of World War II aviation battles, build plastic or balsa wood/paper airplane models and fly small powered model airplanes in circles from a hand-held line that controlled the aircraft pitch.

I briefly considered a military career with the goal of becoming a pilot through the U.S. Air Force or Navy, but I wear glasses and I was told that I would need 20/20 vision to be a military pilot. Instead I chose to become a pharmacist and did so, graduating in 1978 with a doctor of pharmacy degree. After getting my career going, starting a family, buying a house and turning 35, my thoughts again turned to learning to fly. My wife, Linda, actually encouraged me to pursue my dream and we attended an open-house at Four Winds Aviation at Palomar Airport one day in 1988. I signed up for an introductory lesson for the following week with the instructor I met, Brian Godwin.

The first flight with Brian in a two-seat Cessna 152 was memorable because it was my first time in a small airplane. Previously, I had only flown in commercial jets. I was so excited and nervous that I quickly became nauseated after we were airborne, even though it was a beautiful clear day. Not wanting to let Brian know that I was a “wimp” I tried to grit it out until I couldn’t stand it any longer. Fortunately, the window on the pilot side opened on this airplane and I immediately lost my lunch after opening it. Brian expertly landed us back at Palomar and we taxied in to parking. He assumed that I would not want to continue flight instruction after this episode and was making nervous apologies as well as offering to refund my money. Instead I thanked him for such a wonderful adventure and put a deposit on account of $1,000 for a block of lessons.

I soloed after 10 hours in N24750, a blue and white Cessna 152. I finished my private pilot training with Brian and soon after transitioning to the four-seat Cessna 172 and accumulating cross-country experience, began my instrument training also with Brian. About this time I received a small inheritance from my Mom who had passed away and I wanted to purchase an airplane with it. After searching for months all over the country I eventually found N92938 right here in San Diego at Oceanside airport. I purchased it in December of 1989 and have owned her since. N92938 is a 1970 Cessan-182 “Skylane”. I completed my instrument rating in “938” and moved her to my new home airport, Ramona. I have flown my family all over the country for vacations and to visit family and friends. We have been as far east as Frederick, Maryland, as far north as McCall, Idaho, as far south as Cabo San Lucas, Baja Mexico and pretty much everywhere else in between. Some of our favorite local places to fly include Las Vegas, Laughlin, Catalina and Santa Barbara.

I’ve upgraded “938” several times including new digital communication and navigation radios, an instrument approach approved GPS, an autopilot, a new factory remanufactured engine, a propeller overhaul and numerous small items such as a four-place intercom system. Current projects include an enhancement to the autopilot and a gradual refurbishment of the 1970’s red interior. Glenn Kratz with San Diego Airmotive and Dave Hainline of Ramona Avionics have provided almost all of the maintenance for “938” since I have owned her and have done a great job of keeping the airplane current and safe so that I have never had an unpleasant surprise or equipment failure that placed myself of my passengers at risk in 15 years.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve seen much urban crowding and issues of noise and development threaten the existence of local airports as well as the continuing viability of private flying. Far from a rich man’s sport as critics would have you believe, most of the Cessnas and Pipers that you see cost little more than a Lexus automobile and those that own them are usually middle income family men who forego other luxuries in order to pursue their passion of flying. One way to help preserve the right to fly is to share the experience with each new generation. When offered the opportunity to fly in the Young Eagle program a few years back, I jumped at the chance to help contribute. It is very rewarding to give an excited young person their first flight and perhaps spark a lifelong interest in aviation. At the very least, such an experience may foster a positive impression of general aviation in a future non-flying adult.