Admittedly, if it’s becoming regular with the same woman, I can understand. But the point of a 4-seater IMO is to bring 2 or more people, which is far more enjoyable than just one (except if it’s your GF or wife, that’s different).
flying with female passengers gets “tricky” if you are married/etc
I find this kind of amazing. Maybe I’ve just been very lucky. Sure, if you go every other weekend to an all-weekend ‘fly in’ with the same person, that would raise an eyebrow or two. But I’ve taken numerous female friends for a “flight round the bay” without even the slightest thought that there might be a problem.
The best ever was a friend of my daughter who I took for a ride in the Pitts. Most pax in acro flights are good to go home after a few loops and rolls. But she was good for everything. We did tumbles, slow rolls – all the stuff that is distinctly not tummy-friendly. I have a wonderful picture of her just after we landed, still wearing her parachute, with an enormous smile on her face – as opposed to the usual slightly-green look in that situation.
maxbc wrote:
what would make your significant other unhappy that you fly with others
In my experience, the best thing that can happen to any pilot is a spouse who supports the hobby/profession and, in case of GA, is happy to either participate fully or to love to fly and come along as a pax. We have seen quite some lovely couples who fly, own airplanes together and do stuff most of us only dream of.
The much more likely scenario is that the partner does not like it or even disapproves or simply won’t come. Relationships are about sharing experiences, so if something dear to one’s heart is the source of constant discord, fear or even indifference, this makes for a difficult situation.
It is also known that in such situations, people become VERY sensitive towards anyone who might “jump in” to fill the void of a partner not wishing to participate in a certain past time and quite often, not without reason too. Apart from that, any time flying is time away from the family and lots of spouses resent that very much. Flying itself takes up more time than other hobbies apart from costing a lot more too.
Broken relationships as a consequence of people being in aviation are quite common, not only in the airlines but also in GA. So clearly there is potential for conflict every time you fly and particularly if the spouse or partner sees people coming along more than just occasionally, even if it is “only” a shared passion for flying. Jealousy often also stems from a feeling of personal iferiority and hurt egos. So it’s a very sore subject with many.
Disapproving spouses are very often a reason why people either discontinue something they love doing or separate. It is also the reason why quite a few people disappear from aviation and other past times after getting married.
Disapproving spouses are very often a reason why people either discontinue something they love doing or separate. It is also the reason why quite a few people disappear from aviation and other past times after getting married.
I consider myself lucky, being pushed back to flying by my wife. I had a break in my flying career due to war and I thought I would never go back because of different tough life experiences. But my wife persuaded me to get my wings back, supporting me throughout the whole path from PPL to ATPL. Our flying trips are inseparable part of this journey.
My wife does not share my passion for flying, but does come along 3 times a year when going to Catalonia. She has always been very supportive of my hobby though, and when overflying my home I’ve never seen an unfamiliar car. My daughters are also not into it at all. I remember once flying to Malaga with the whole family and enjoyed a wonderful scenery; the Sierra Nevada. Looked back into the cabin, girls vast asleep..
My eldest daughter offered me to get her PPL so that I could continue to be airborne should I lose my medical. That was sweet..
A wife/GF who supports your flying but does not go with you [anymore] is ok if you
otherwise you will find yourself alone and probably not exactly happy about it. And the vast majority of wives/GFs will not allow regular female passengers; this is simply a fact if you do any sort of poll or informal research. Most women will say their man must not be allowed any kind of shared activity with a woman which they both enjoy, because a relationship “could develop”. If you don’t believe me, ask around… Of course we all know Swedish women are the exception; this has been known since Leonard Cohen got going 
The result is that a man has to choose whether to accept this restriction, or be a permanent bachelor; the latter is okay until you get into your 60s and then you have to work hard on it, wearing ever more necklaces and bracelets and funny hats and eventually looking like Peter Stringfellow (but without his funding)
Female pilots rarely have this problem because most choose a man who flies with them and continues to do so Unfortunately these are only about 6-7% of GA.
Emir is very fortunate
Peter wrote:
because a relationship could develop
Yeah I think I get it. If I imagine my (ex) GF starting to do some hobby activities with just one guy, repeatedly, I would start asking questions, or even ask for restrictions as well. Especially if there’s a combination of encouraging factors: frequency of the shared activity, type of hobby (passion vs casual), them being alone with the other person, and never being there to assert your presence or watch if something develops.
Peter wrote:
Emir is very fortunate
My wife always says than I’m not aware how fortunate I am. Maybe that’s a hidden message supporting your research
Peter wrote:
Of course we all know Swedish women are the exception; this has been known since Leonard Cohen got going
I think you may be confusing Norway and Sweden. But hey, both countries have an “w” in their names.
