Green flashed by, the wind a soft roar against the sides of the machine. He fearlessly flew on, prepared to pass the test.

Senior Zane Crabtree earned his pilot’s license in August after obtaining his solo license. The pilot’s license allows him to legally fly a plane with passengers. Crabtree found interest in flying following his family’s involvement in flight.

“I have three uncles that are all pilots for Southwest Airlines,” Crabtree said. “I have an aunt that is a flight attendant, and there are more obscure people in my family that are all pilots, so I’ve kind of been around it. My cousin died in a plane crash in 2012, and after that, I got more interested in it. Not long after that, I went to Oshkosh, which is one of the biggest airshows in America. It’s in Wisconsin, and I was immersed in flying for a couple of days, and I got a lot more interested after that.”

In order to obtain the license, Crabtree said he went through vigorous testing, including a 100 question written exam, a practical oral exam, a test flight and a minimum of 40 hours of flight time.

“The written test questions range from rules and regulations to the physics of flight,” Crabtree said. “With the practical test, which is an oral exam, I had to start preparing for a couple of maneuvers and landings that you have to be able to show that you are competent in. You have to be able to land the plane if the engine shuts off at any point in flight. After you do all of that, you can finally get into a plane with a certified examiner. If you are able to pass all of that, you can get your pilots license.”

Crabtree said while flying for Southwest Airlines is a main option, he is not sure he desires a full-time flight career. Due to a pilot shortage, Crabtree said he could easily enter the field if he decides to.

“Pilots just are not training,” Crabtree said. “There are many airlines that have to leave planes at airports just sitting there because they do not have pilots to fly them. There are a lot licenses and ratings having to go through that, along with a college degree just in the first place. The main reason people do not do it is just because we have a general fear. People tend to fear things that are violent and scary, so if you see a scary plane crash, it tends to frighten people quite a bit.”

Contrary to the general fear, Crabtree said flying a plane is safer than driving a car.

“When I get in my plane, I don’t have any fears,” Crabtree said. “I feel safer. I always tell people that it is safer for you to fly in a plane than it is for you to ride with me to get to the airport. The training I go through just to be able to get a private license blows out of the park compared to driving a car. It is just way more intricate. There is so much studying involved. The minimum you can fly is 40 hours, and you have to do it with instructor, and there are many specific things that you have to do. ”

Crabtree gained experience through flight, including a cross country flight with one of his instructors.

“I got to fly in his company jet five hours to go to Minnesota right on the border of Canada,” Crabtree said. “That flight was about $8,000 to go there and back. That was a pretty awesome experience.”