Charles was onboard with Nicholas Robert when his hydrogen balloon made its first flight on December 1, 1783. The Charlière flew farther, higher, and longer than the Montgolfiere had done two weeks earlier. When they eventually touched down, Nicholas Robert got out, and the balloon immediately went up again, making Charles the first man to fly solo.
Pilots are life-long learners, and, per the Feynman Learning Technique, the best way to learn anything is to teach it to someone else. With that in mind, plus a desire to pass the torch to a new generation, some old pilots developed a week-long aviation camp for youth, ages 14-18.
Ask any group of pilots to raise their hands if still a student, and you will be surprised at how many hands go up. The pace of progress for aviation instruments requires pilots to be lifelong students, and they know it.
For me, this was a very long final. I pulled out carb heat, and the engine quit! Already rattled by the radio problem, I undid what I had just done. The engine roared back to life. I left carb heat alone after that and landed normally. Then I realized that I had pulled the mixture, and not carb heat.
Covid shut down Young Eagles and $100 hamburgers, and my flying skills were going to pot. “Use it or lose it” is true where adherence to procedures and reactions to emergencies are concerned. Would a flight simulator help? What would one cost?