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"We are the protagonists of our stories called life, and there is no limit to how high we can fly."


PHD. MBA. MHS. Type rated on A350, A330, B777, B747-400, B747-200, B757, B767, B737, B727. International Airline Pilot / Author / Speaker. Dedicated to giving the gift of wings to anyone following their dreams. Supporting Aviation Safety through training, writing, and inspiration. Fighting for Aviation Safety and Airline Employee Advocacy. Safety Culture and SMS change agent.

Friday, July 12, 2013

Ron Rapp

Friday's Fabulous Flyer

 Ron Rapp

As many of your know, Ron Rapp is part of the Blogging In Formation team. The first week each month, the six of us get together and blog on the same topic. But more than blogging, Ron is a pilot that we can all admire.

Talent, dedication and commitment can only be attributed to a pilot who flies so many different aircraft. Unlike airline pilots who fly one plane at a time.

He makes his life as a pilot, but not for the airlines. He teaches, and is always flying some pretty cool planes. He is also married to the love of his life. Ron has it all, and then some.


Ron Rapp is an ATP-rated pilot, who has experience in more than 50 aircraft types, including tailwheel, aerobatics, formation flying, gliders, seaplanes, turboprops, business jets, warbirds, experimentals, radials, glass panels, and more! But how does he make his money?

Ron Rapp: "I guess you could just call me a contract pilot and instructor. I'm currently flying the G-IV, a few types of King Airs, and a wide variety of GA aircraft. I looked through my logbook and the most recent page had a turbo Saratoga, Pitts, Extra 300, Diamond DA-40, RV-6, RV-7, Gulfstream, DA-42 TwinStar, and the King Air. I'm kind of all over the place, but it keeps the days fun and interesting."

He has logged over 6,300 hours in the previous 15 years by doing a wide variety of things. He has volunteered with Angel Flight, written mile-long messages in the air as a SkyTyper, crop-dusted with ex-military King Airs, has flown across oceans in a Gulfstream IV, and tumbled through the air in his Pitts S-2B. If


Ron has also owned three aircraft and says, “thankfully not all at the same time!”

More bragging rights—Ron is also an accredited National-level judge! He also had 2,500 hours of dual instruction, teaching recreational and competition-style aerobatics to students in the Pitts, Extra, Decathlon, Eagle, other such aircraft.

He tells me he has a “particular fondness for the RV series and has instructed in the RV-4, 6, 6A, 7, 7A, 8, 8A, and 9.” But he has also logged nearly 1,000 hours in the Cirrus and Columbia/Corvalis series and is intimately familiar with glass panels ranging from the G1000 to the Avidyne Entegra, Dynon SkyView, and others.


Ron’s spark to the passion of aviation came at the age of 6 or 7 years old on a flight from Los Angeles to St. Louis in a Boeing 727.

Ron Rapp: “In those days, people were allowed into the cockpit during the flight, and after a few minutes with the pilots and a chance to sit at the controls after landing… well, the rest is history.”



Ron Rapp: “That's not to say I didn't fly before that, but I didn't pick up the ball and run with it until I was 25.   I started scheduling lessons 3-4x/week and never stopped flying at that pace.”
 
Ron is a pilot who took his tragedy and turned it into opportunity. His story is unique, and he counts his blessings daily, as we all should.




Ron Rapp: “When I learned to fly, I had an abundance of both money and time—something that is extremely rare among students. I didn't realize how blessed I was in that regard until I started instructing. Then I realized that most students had either the time OR the money to fly, but rarely did they have both. The youngin's typically have plenty of time, but the cost is a limiting factor. The more established individuals, especially along the Orange County coastline (Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Huntington Beach—basically any place with "beach" in the name) have plenty of funds, but their time is often extraordinarily limited due to family and work obligations.”

With a pilot who has achieved such success with his career, I had to ask him what his greatest struggle was.


Ron Rapp: "My greatest struggle was simply with patience. Learning to fly can be a frustrating activity for Type A personalities. I'm not sure that I'm "Type A", but when I decide to pursue something, I do put 100% of my focus and energy into it. Learning to fly required patience due to maintenance activity, inclement weather (SoCal is famous for coastal stratus), instructor availability, and so on. Having said that, I realized early on that this was a barrier and so I decided to schedule 2 lessons for every 1 that I expected to fly. That way if I encountered poor weather or a grounding squawk, no problem. I always had backups planned. It worked beautifully.”

Being that most pilots have a type-A personality, I suspect many struggle with the patience aspect of of flying. Whether it's training, building hours, or the need to be at their final destination. My advice... remember it's a journey.

Please take a moment and leave Ron a comment here. Then click on over to his blog and see how Ron turned tragedy into opportunity, and more on how he started flying, in Looking Back. You will be connected to his website: The House of Rapp.

Thank you for sharing your story Ron. I'm hoping you will be my instructor when we find me that perfect plane. Also... click on Ron Rapp and see how to connect with him on Twitter, Facebook and other social media locations.

Enjoy the journey!
XO Karlene 

12 comments:

  1. Turning tragedy into opportunity, that is truly inspiring! Thanks for introducing us to Ron. I wish him the very best in all aspects of his life.

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    1. Thank you so much Heather. And you know that I wish the very best for you too.

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  2. Karlene, thank you for introducing us to this incredible pilot. Always inspiring reading these stories. I wish you and your family a great weekend!

    -Jeremy

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    1. Thank you so much Jeremy. Some day you'll come to the west coast and fly with him too!

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  3. Thanks for the introduction to your readers, Karlene! One of these days I'm going to have to feature you on my site as well. Dying to know how you flew all those airplanes around the world and still raised a family. #amazing

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    1. Ah... Thank you! Maybe when book two comes out. Your story is such an inspiration! And one day we are going to play in the world series poker tournament together.

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  4. This is an awesome post. I loved hearing about how Ron found a way to go a different route and enjoy the diversity of aviation.

    There are so many exciting, cool, diverse things one can do in the aviation world... something that makes me really optimistic as a student pilot!

    Can't wait to see if I'm ever in the same spot Ron has been in,
    -Swayne

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    1. Keep that optimism Swayne. And knowing you... you're going to come to the West Coast and fly with him. :) You have so many opportunities! And more to come. I'm going to put something in place that will help your career. Stand by for the excitement.

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    2. Haha awesome Karlene! Can't wait to see what you're thinking.

      It's been so much of a help just being able to speak with you about things... really has helped me through some decisions.

      Appreciate it,
      -Swayne

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    3. Swayne, I'm so glad! It's always good to hear other comments. Like pulling in all data to make the best decisions we can.

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  5. I've had the good fortune to have had Ron as a very patient Instrument instructor. His calm demeanor and intuitive feel for the stress levels incurred by student pilots never fails to amaze me. Thanks for making me a better pilot Ron!

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    1. Thank you so much MJG for the GREAT comment. I know that Ron appreciates you as a student, too. And the ability to assess the stress level is a skill of an excellent instructor. I had no doubt Ron would fall into that category!

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Thank you for your comment! If your comment doesn't appear immediately, it will after I land. Enjoy the journey!