People may dream about flying, but freshman Chris Zaboji made it reality.
Zaboji is a member of the Skyline Soaring Club at the Front Royal Airport. There, he glides with many different types of gliders and reaches speeds of 115 miles per hour.
“I’ve been gliding for a little over a year now,” said Zaboji. “All the planes I can fly do the same thing, they just have different performance levels.”
Zaboji decided to start gliding after watching his pilot father and uncle.
Though he wishes to fly in the future, he has one problem– his age.
“I didn’t want to wait to be sixteen to fly so I chose to glide,” said Zaboji.
Gliding differs from flying–the aircraft does not have an engine and must be pulled into the air by a larger plane. Once in the air, the small plane detaches from the bigger aircraft and glides to the ground.
The glider stays in the air for a long time. Zaboji’s longest flight was one hour and 12 minutes.
There is one main limitation to this type of flying. Largely dependent on the weather, soaring requires sunny days when lifting wind is present.
Lifting wind is essential to gliding as it helps to carry the glider. Although soaring is possible in the rain, there is less lifting wind, resulting in lower elevation.
One of Zaboji’s favorite parts about flying is his command over the glider.
“When you’re up in the air, it’s cool because you are in control,” said Zaboji.
In the future, Zaboji aspires to be an airline pilot like his father and uncle. Unlike other people, he does not have a fear of heights or flying. He feels at ease in the air.
“There have been near collisions with other planes, but I fly with my dad so it’s like being at home.”