Ever since I was a child I've wanted to learn to fly; there's something about it which has always struck me as being free. When I was young I used to jump off of the garden wall flapping my arms, and as I got bigger this progressed to jumping out of trees, convinced that I would glide if I could just get the angle right. This led to me breaking both my wrists and my mother banning me from going anywhere where there was anything higher than a desk that I might climb.
Though these initial attempts weren't the best way of learning to fly, it was never really a passion which went away and during the gap year of my law degree I took lessons and gained my pilots license. Though it was only for a small plane the feeling of freedom was tremendous, especially the first time I took a solo flight and I began to think twice about studying law. Flying made me feel free whereas the law felt very rigid and confining and I wasn't sure I could go back to classes for my third year.
Later that week, I went for a drink with one of my friends who suggested that I look into specialising in aviation law.
Aside from the fact that it would have been a huge waste of time, money and effort to give up my studies, I did really enjoy the legal profession and working in aviation law would be a great midpoint between my two passions; it would also be lucrative enough that I could afford to fly fairly regularly after I was qualified, which was a definite bonus.
Taking my friends suggestion, I returned to my studies with a renewed vigour and spoke to one of my lecturers about how I would approach specialising in aviation law. Though there was a lot of extra work involved compared to being a regular high street solicitor, it would be worth it and the fact that I already had my pilot's license would definitely go in my favour when it came to applying for courses and jobs.
I studied hard and flew when I could, and as the time to qualify drew nearer, I became convinced that I was doing the right thing. Though the work was hard and I'll be in a specialised and competitive field, I'm sure that I'll be able to make a good career for myself in aviation law and hopefully be able to get my license in a bigger plane as well.
Author Resource:-
Thomas Pretty is a solicitor who has recently qualified in the field of aviation. Find out more about aviation law at http://www.stewartslaw.com/
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