Pilots of future "serious" about flight

The romance of aviation was celebrated this month nationwide and in Iowa, but one instructor says student pilots today are serious about flying planes for a living. Jane Berg, chief flight instructor at Indian Hills Community college in Ottumwa, says most students are career-oriented, planning to be an airline pilot for a living, and fly corporate, charter or other commercial flights. Indian Hills offers complete programs to train both pilots and airplane mechanics. The head instructor says there will be plenty of jobs for them in the industry as we’re a mobile society and people like to move around the country quickly, so there will be a need for pilots but also mechanics since “you can’t pull over” in the sky if you have trouble. Berg says the best pilot candidate is NOT a young Iowa student who’s a fearless daredevil. She thinks a good student is meticulous and precise since you have to perform flying carefully and “be ahead of the airplane” and know what’s going on and what to expect. Berg prefers a very dedicated person, since it’s a lot to learn and “a whole new world.” Berg says the number of women in aviation is still 1/20th that of the number of men, though it’s crept up to 5.7 percent. And for business or pleasure, she says anyone who dreams of learning to fly should go for it. Berg says there’s nothing more rewarding than soaring with the eagles and looking down to earth which appears so peaceful from the air. She says once you start flying you’ll never regret it. Berg admits that once a long time ago, she was so frightened she almost didn’t take her first airplane