Joey Martin, sport pilot of a weight-shift trike said he’s taken 607 people up in his completely open aircraft. I’m his 608th first-timer. Flying in a plane compared to a WST was like the difference between riding a motorcycle and driving a car. There is no windshield. There were no doors, no walls. Other than the frame holding the wheels, prop, and wing together, there were only two seats, seatbelts, and foot rests. The wind-in-your-face design of the craft gives one a breathtaking flight experience.
Martin’s trike is from France, a 2-seater Aircreation with a Rotax 582, 65-horsepower engine and a 67 inch prop. The 32 foot wing is from Washington State, the pilot controls by tilting the wing’s grab bar up and down, left and right.
Martin’s runway is the back yard of his East Milton home. He said by himself, he needs 120 feet to take off, 200 to 260 feet with a passenger. We taxied back to a fence, gained speed, and took off next to his workshop and over the trees.
Martin said he’s been flying since July 17, 2006 when he first flew solo. “It was the scariest thing I’ve ever done but it was the most rewarding,” he said. When he started flying, Martin said there was no requirement by the Federal Aviation Administration for flying weight-shift trikes. In 2008, Martin said the FAA required sport pilots to get a sport pilot endorsement to carry passengers; there is still no license necessary to fly a single-seater.
“Gene Fulton got me hooked on it and taught me how to fly. He’s in Spartanburg, South Carolina.” Martin said he made six trips to see Fulton before Fulton allowed him to fly alone. On his first flight, Martin said the throttle malfunctioned and he had to disable it with his foot requiring him to glide back down to the ground without an engine. Since then, Martin says he’s logged 1,420 flight hours.
Martin said his next goal is earning his Certified Flight Instructor license so he can teach. Right now, the closest CFI’s he said are Michael Percy in Fort Walton and Jeff Bell in Navarre.
He’ll take anyone who wants to fly. As a sport pilot, Martin can’t charge to take a passenger up with him.
“I do it to share the experience. It’s not normally something people experience. That’s what it’s about.”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Number 608 takes flight (with VIDEO)