Student finds passion through earning private pilot license
Luelana Bustamante
– Staff Writer –
During his second semester at STLCC-Meramec, Mike Beary, 34, decided to change the path of his life after witnessing his father’s passing from pancreatic cancer.
“My father always pushed me to get my license to fly airplanes and I took it for about 20 hours, but it was boring for me,” Beary said. “Then, when he was in the hospital one night before he died, it just occurred to me why I just don’t try to fly a helicopter?”
Shortly after, he quit his job, left New York, and moved back to St. Louis, where he lived with his mother. Beary arrived in St. Louis with a dream to fly high: a dream to become a helicopter pilot.
Beary explained why he decided to be a helicopter pilot and how he got his start.
Although Beary’s father worked as an airplane pilot in New York, Beary’s desire to fly helicopters came as a self-realization after his father passed away.
“Basically, him passing away and not being there to push me made me realize that I wanted to do it for my own benefit,” Beary said.
In December of 2008, Beary took helicopter lessons. Two times a week for four months, Beary went to Midwest Rotor, located at Parks Airport in downtown St. Louis, to learn how to fly in the Dual R22, a two-seat, small, white helicopter. For these classes, he paid $250 per hour. After more than 40 hours of practicing through winter weather, Beary got his private pilot license in April of 2009.
“There are not many crazy-enough people who do classes during the winter time. It takes a while for those things to heat up,” Beary said.
Frank Spavale, the owner of the Midwest Rotor flight training school, said winter weather makes flying a breeze.
Flying a helicopter is very draining, Beary said. Pilots have to use both legs and hands at all times during the flight. After his first 30-minute lesson, he was so tired he headed home and took a nap.
“I thought I would never be able to learn how to fly this thing. It is so tense,” Beary said. “Your legs, hands and butt are tense all the time and you are sitting like this for half an hour.”
Even though flying a helicopter is exhausting, Beary said he had considered flying helicopters as a full-time job after getting his license, but he changed his plans. Beary now plans to study medicine, which led him to STLCC where he now studies. He currently takes classes at Meramec and Florissant Valley campus simultaneously.
Beary said that he will continue to fly helicopters in the future.
“I really love flying helicopters and it’s pretty exciting, but I don’t want to do it as a career. Eventually, I would become an instructor, but just as a side job,” Beary said.
