When and What Started our hobby with aviation?

[Delta777LR]

Ive been wanting to come out with this for along time, The big question to us all, What started us all into the hobby of aviation? Im going to be first to share mines.

I was 7 or 8 years old when I started to watch planes approaching LGA from the Bronx. My dad at that time used to take me to Whitestone Cinemas Parking lot to watch the planes, and he showed me Soudview at a later time. That was the time I spotted airlines like American Airlines flying in DC-10s 727s, and MD-80s, Delta 727s, L-1011s, 757s and 767s United 727s and 737s, Trump Shuttle 727, Pan Am 727s, TWA 727s and L-1011s, Continental 727s, 737s DC-9s and MD-80s, Northwest 727s, DC-9s and 757s and last but not least Eastern 727s and DC-9s. I flew to Texas on Pan Am back in 1985. In 1991 My original favorate airline was Pan Am because of the scheme the (billboard) colors but then my father told me they went out of business, then I started to love Delta. When I was 9 years old I spotted Delta flying around and I used to yell out "Theres American Airlines dad" but it was Delta. But yeah, Delta became my favorate airline back in 1992 at that year I flew to LGA-MSP on Northwest (Airbus A320) then (DC-9) MSP-LGA, The very first collectable model Ive ever had was a Delta MD-11 when I was 11 years old, then a year later I started reading about planes as my mother got me books on commercial aviation, I read alot about the major US Airlines. The very first foreighn airline Ive ever heard of was Lufthansa which is currently my second favorate airline. Ive recieve my second collectable model still at 11 years old which was a Lufthansa 747(herpa). My father has flown on many planes since the 1960s since he is a latin musician. The main person in my family that really got me more into planes out of anyone is my uncle, He was a huge Herpa wings collector back in the 90s in which thats what I currently collect. To add this too, My dad took me on a trip to Switzerland back in 1996 on Swissair 743 out of JFK, came back to EWR on an A310. Then 1998 I started doing aviation photography with my old minolta camera. In 2000 I went to Pheonix for the airliners international convention and 2001 in Miami. Also taking pictures there. I continued on and in 2006 I join NYCAviation, a good friend of mine told me that I should join an aviation photography group and here I am now here with you guys.

[Jetinder]

Mine started when i was 2-3 years old, i was facinated by the 707, 727, DC10, IL62 and VC10.

When I was 6 years old I saw Concorde on tv and i fell head over heals in love with this bird and ever since then no other plane can match it.

As a 6 year old I pestered my father to take me to Heathrow to see her. After many months of me constantly nagging him and pestering him (like all 6 years old when they want some thing) my father gave in and took me to Heathrow.

The second I saw her in “real” life I was mesmerised by her beauty, looks, the sound of her engines and sheer raw power, I was totally hooked on her and every summer I use to nag my father in to taking me to Heathrow, we went there almost every summer school holiday to see her.

When we got to Heathrow we use to go to the plane spotting area which stretched from the roof of Queens Building to the end Terminal 2’s roof. Eventually my father got fed up with me standing at Heathrow for ages waiting for Concorde so when I was teenager and old enough to look after my self my father gave the return train fare to Heathrow and I went on my own to see her.

At first I was nervous about going on my own to Heathrow but when I got there and heard her familiar sound and saw her taking off I knew I’d done the right thing in coming here after that I tried to come to Heathrow as many summer holidays as I could, apart from seeing her on Terminal 2 I also use to walk around the perimeter fence to North and South runways to see her.

If the TU144 had been properly engineered to fly to the USA (like Concorde was), wow seing Concorde and the TU144 would have been such a brilliant thing to see.

But it never happened the TU144 was never up to the job and Concorde beat it.

There where other planes like the F104, SR71A, F14, Mig 21, Mig 25, RAF Lightning which i also liked but never saw these fly, i never heard their raw.

Overall I fell in love with Concorde and with SSTs like the TU144.

These days i hardly got to LHR (last time i went was in Oct 2007) as Concorde isnt flying.......... so there is no point.

If i want to see the A380-hippo i can go there at any time but to me the A380-hippo isn't special as it isnt "Concorde" so the hippo can waite.

But my interest in Concorde and SSTs will never die and i still have tons of 35mm photos which i scan in, digitally restore and put on the internet, i also try and put my memories of her down on paper as well.

[Planesntrains]

Mine was pretty quick and simple. I used to fly with my family to RSW via CLT, and to ORD to see cousins, aunts, and uncles. That got me started. When I was 15-16, I became more and more interested when I started flying to visit them on my own. Usually US Airways on-board a MD-80 or MD-82 when headed to Florida, or American MD-82's or B 737's to Chicago. Trains have always been my primary obsession, but aviation always caught my eye. Guess I just never knew how to approach spotting until I started talking to a fellow National Railway Historical Society member who was a pilot for US Airways, and later for the owner of Newsweek after US laid him off. He directed me to this site, got me interested in ACARS (a project in progress), and "decoded" the language of ATC for me.

You guys have been a big help. Hopefully when the WX gets better I might have the pleasure of meeting some of you around Planeview or Baywaters. :)

[eric8669]

For me when I was 2 years old and living on Jewel ave right under the 31 approach to LGA my mother use to say that every time a plane went over I would point up at the passing aircraft. From there I moved to Valley Stream where I lived near the approach to the JFK 22's and my Summer Camp was right underneath the 31R approach and every morning as we arrived at Camp at 9AM two Concordes would come in one after another and on rare occasions you would get a parallel Concorde arrivals with the British Concorde on 31R and the Air France on the left. And this is something I will always remember, On quiet Sunday mornings if I was up early enough and you listened for it you could hear the Sonic booms as the Concorde approached. My first flight was on a Eastern Airlines L-1011 JFK-MCO 1985.

As for the photography part of it, Probably beginning in the mid 90's I would just go out and shoot Concorde Departures. Starting shooting other Aviation in 2003.

[NYARTCCFAN]

I lived in paterson NJ under the approach to 22l at EWR and I saw a United DC-8(yes it's been that long and thats how old I am) flying overhead and said I wonder if I could listen to the planes on a radio. My dad bought me a Bearcat 210 radio which I started to listen to EWR frequencies at the age of 10 years old. I am now 43 and am increasing my obsession :lol: still.

[pgengler]

My grandmother lives in Franklin Square and when JFK is landing 22L you can watch the arrivals from the front yard. Sometimes when we visited I would borrow binoculars and try my hand at aircraft identification (other than knowing when it was a 747 I have no idea how well I did). We'd sometimes be driving out there on the Belt Parkway and see Concorde departing, though always from a distance. I remember thinking that once I was able to drive I would drive up to EWR and watch planes there someday, though I never actually did (never any free time between school & work, then off to college without a car).

[Gerard]

Watching Chuck and PT in the great TV show "Whirlybirds". It ran from 1957-60 but I didnt start watching it until the
60s (showing my age, lol). Also my father used to take me to the LGA observation deck. And we lived in the Ravenswood housing projects in LIC and the helos to E60 and E34 passed over our building all the time.

[Mateo]

I'm 24 days old in this picture. I believe we're at Linden, and I'm about to go on my first flight. Does that count as an early start? :)

[lijk604]

Mine was genetic. My dad was working for UAL at JFK 3 years before I was born...he would often take me to the office on weekends starting when I was 6 or 7 years old (early 1970's). At the time UAL was in the terminal closest to the Van Wyck next to AA's stained glass terminal. I believe at the time it was terminal 8. His office was rampside and had a panorama view overlooking the ramp. I grew up drooling at the window watching UAL DC-8's, 727-100's, DC-10's taxi in and out of their gates, as well as the colorful Braniff aircraft which UA handled at the time. My best memory from my early days was when he contacted a friend at BA, and got us a tour of the Concorde early one morning before the crew showed up. That's a day I'll never forget...as I never had a chance to fly on the SST.
I never lost the love of aviation, and he brought me there the day Northwest brought their first 747-400 to JFK. I still have a picture from my old 125 camera somewhere. Fast forward to 1987, and an opening in the Ops department of UAL in JFK came up and I went for the job. This was in a time where they paid for me to fly to Chicago O'Hare for the interview. I worked in JFK for 16 years until 2003 when the bankruptcy situation finally caused UA to sell off the division I was working in at the time. Since then I have been working on the corporate side of aviation...so when you are around jet fuel all that time, it's in your system. :)

[MarkLawrence]

Also a genetic link - both my parents were in the business for a charter company in the UK. My parents never lost the bug when we moved to South Africa and very soon had friends in SAA and we were always close to some action, either in Durban, Cape Town or Johannesburg. When I left school, I went back to the UK to try and join the RAF to fly, but my eye sight wasn't good enough. I've always been a plane fanatic, whether flying or spotting - and it continues today with airports close to work, home and the occasional trip to NY when I can get it in.

[727C47]

I was born under the Canarsie approach,enough said,and my earliest memories are the last of the Connies(early 60's),and the first generation early jets screaming (literally) overhead at 500 agl heading for 13L,ahh South Ozone Park,I always wanted to be a pilot,when I finally landed at Kennedy for the 1st time back in '94,at the yoke of a freightdog DC-3,God's grace it was the Canarsie approach,over the old sod, as we taxied in ,after serenading lower Brooklyn,and Southern Queens ,with a round engine lullaby,heading for Lufthansa Cargo, I do confess to bit of mist in my eyes, it had to be the salt in that breeze wafting over Jamaica Bay.

[AA 777]

For me it is also a genetic thing. Mom's worked for AA for 33 years and continues there to this day. Without a doubt I got the aviation bug in me from her. She worked at AA HDQ in NY before it moved to DFW - since then shes been at LGA. When I was in preschool they made the parents write down on a piece of paper what they thought their son/daughter would do one day for a job. My mom put "something in aviation" since I was obsessed with it from as far back as she can remember....Not bad for a guess 20 years ago eh?! Our house and my preschool were both on the 22's arrival path for JFK and I would always run to the window to see what would be coming in. I had no idea at the time what I was looking at, but I sure as hell loved it. Hell, I still go to the front window at home and see whats coming over :D The difference is now I know its Swiss and not the red cross ;)

Mom would often bring me into work with her and I would just sit in the terminal or her office and just watch planes for 8 hours - it was pure bliss. I was also introduced to some great people throughout the years from going into work with Mom that I still remain friends with. For those of you that know me well, you know that AA at LGA is pretty much a second home and family to me as I grew up there!

We used to always fly to Ft. Myers FL (RSW) when I was little to see my grandparents and while seeing my grandparents was awesome I loved flying there. Flights from LGA to RDU on AA DC10's and 727's...oh life was good. In fact my first model airplane (which I still have) was an Ertl AA DC10 with retractable gears :mrgreen:

I cant even tell you when I decided I wanted to be a pilot. Its kinda always just been the plan. When I was 15 I decided that I couldnt be kept on the ground anymore and began to take flight lessons at ISP. I got my Private Pilot ASEL just after my 18th birthday. From there I went off to college where I got my Instrument Airplane, Commercial Pilot ASEL & AMEL, Flight Instructor ASEL/Instrument Airplane and Advanced/Instrument Ground Instructor.

I was lucky enough to work at AA for the 2007 and 2008 summers as an Internship. Many of the people I worked with would "babysit" me at LGA when I was little and just wanted to watch the planes. It was an awesome experience that I will absolutely never forget. I got to do things that I could have only previously wished and dreamed. I also met so many people in the industry that hopefully I will remain good friends with throughout my career.

As far as the Photography part of the hobby. That started in 2002 when I got my first Olympus camera. While the quality sucked I still loved going to JFK to watch whatever might come in. A big thanks goes out to my parents for driving me and putting up with sitting in parking lots watching airplanes. Mom had a deal with me - If I got up on Sunday mornings for 7am church she would drive me to JFK to watch the Concorde land. It was a deal in my book! In 2003 I begged for a DSLR and for my birthday I got a 10D with a 100-400L and from there it spread like wildfire.

Currently I just started my first semester of my senior year and by this time next year I will be done with school and looking for a job. I realize that aviation may not be paying the best lately, but to me theres nothing like seeing the sunset or sunrise from FL350. Heres to hoping theres a job flying in a year! John (lijk604) ya got anything? ;)

Me Circa mid/late 1990s

[jerslice]

My relationship with aircraft began early too - my first flight (though I have no recollection of it) was a half empty shuttle flight from BOS-DTW-MSP on a 747 (pics suggest a -200) when I was one. However, it was a conflicted relationship. While I loved looking at plane, I didn't love being on them - and my mom tells me that I spent my first flight (and second) screaming at the top of my lungs so much that most of the rest of the pax moved to different parts of the a/c to try to get away from me.
My family took a lot of trips as a family (I increasingly realize how very lucky I was to have such a privilege) - and when I was about 10 we started moving away from regional trips in New England and started taking flights all over the US. I remember flying on DL Express at least once a year for six or seven years on DL732's to MCO from BDL. Some of my other memorables were the numerous times passing through ORD on the way to places like DEN, LAS, PHX, etc., flying into Kona HI (exotic little airport), flying on a CO A300 EWR-MCO, among many others. My fear of flying eventually went away as I got older (I love it now - and would like to go for my privates at some point in my life).
After meeting my current girlfriend in Washington DC and then each of moving back to our homes (her in Chicago and me near Boston) I spent quite a bit of money flying back and forth to her home outside Chicago and her college in central Illinois - I liked that it gave me an excuse to fly to STL, MDW, and ORD often. Once I moved out to Seattle and Laura eventually moved out with me, I've been taking opportunities to fly as often as I can afford - going to LAX this past November, and going back to MA in May. Planning another trip to LAX/SFO and finding obscure airports in WA state this summer.
Photography itself I picked up from my mom - who was a photography major and still does quite a bit. I always wanted to have the camera on my shoulder and take shots like her. With the planes I wanted perfection and I wanted to get as close as possible. I started with a 35mm film p%s (woefully inadequate), then moved to an Olympus 27-70 p&s, then to Canon Rebel film with a 70-200. Around this time I discovered a.net and jetphotos and the 100-400L (which I finally bought several months ago). My desire to get more zoom, and better quality led me first to the Sony H1 (served me well all things considered) and then to 40D and all the glorious lenses since. I love catching different a/c in different liveries and in different places - and with more pilot friends I have grown ever more fond of flying and flight in general.
I've found spotting to be increasingly a stress reliever for me - and I spent many summer afternoons in PVD by myself with a lawnchair, a case of my favorite drink, the camera and a radio or a book just enjoying the day and meeting new friends along the way. I can be found almost every Saturday morning/afternoon now sitting somewhere at BFI listening to NPR with my camera waiting for something to come by.

[Idlewild]

It was late 1977. I took my first airline flight from JFK to LHR. It was aboard a BA Super VC-10. At first I had a middle seat all the way in the back, then I whined a little showing my puppy dog eyes, the older gentleman gave me his window seat, all I had to do was not annoy him. The plane was taxing, I saw the flaps go down, the flight surfaces being checked. The engines went full steam and my face was pressed against the window. One hour later we had to turn around because most of the instruments went kapock. I looked in awe as the fuel was being jettisoned and I got hooked on aviation.

[AAGold]

My love of aviation and photography both have their roots in my childhood growing up in Virginia. It was there that my interests in both began. I lived in a small town about 70 miles south of Oceana Naval Air Station. Quite often we'd see the planes from the base fly over just above tree top level. It was exciting. You'd hear them a long tme before they got to where you were, and then in a second they would just zoom over your head and disappear so quickly. One of the older guys that lived in this town became and Air Force fighter pilot and when he could he'd fly over the town buzzing it. It was a thrill for me at 7 or 8 years old to watch the display.

When I was 13 I started working with show horses. Looking at the magazines and seeing the photos of the horses caught mid-stride, I wanted to learn how to do that. So began my photography career. While I started photographing horses for the first few years as I became older my photography interest expanded to include just about everything, airplanes and airliners included.

When I look back over the years I've had two main interests ... photography and aviation. I've enjoyed both for a long time. That's what is so special about photography as a hobby, you can enjoy it with just about anything else you might enjoy doing. And today, with the Internet, it's so easy to meet others who share your same interest. This wasn't all that possible 30 years ago for hobbies that weren't mainstream.

Art