The story in this book starts when Carolina is checked out on a Piaggio P-180, a business jet we al know from its special design with 2 push props and the canard wings in front of the cockpit. After that Carolina tells her personal story and adventures during her time serving as a co-pilot flying this turbo prop for a small charter company in Italy. The book is a mixture of her life as kid, during her education and the events that lead to her life as an commercial pilot. Especially interesting for our readers are the stories from the cockpit that is why we buy a book like this isn’t it?
And they are exiting reading. The beauty of flying, seeing strange cities and countries, the stress to handle unexpected situations and the sometimes potentially dangerous encounters high in the air. It is all there in this book. But the author is not avoiding the self criticism and imperfections that comes with her character and the fact that she is a woman in a world ruled by men. That sometimes leads to collisions with colleagues and the management of the company she is working for and even to the end of her career as pilot.
Carolina Dellonte’s adventures don’t stop in the cockpit but also outside the cockpit she is confronted with events that gives her a deeper insight in the live she lives. She takes us on a philosophical path that in the end shows her the road to the life she really wants to lead. Before we are there we experience many exciting situations in the book with her but also during the preparations and ground handling of the many private flights with all kind of passengers and goods. And it is not all fun that passes by. Bad weather, delays, living in hotels with terrible food and short nights in sometimes strange places. In the end she gets into a heavy principal conflict with the management of her company that leads to her grounding. She manages a triumphally come back in the cockpit but the course to a big change in her life is set.
I have read this book with much pleasure. Its not all about flying but there is always a string with her daily job and the stories about her youth and family are also fun to read. Pilots amongst us that read this book will always experience a touch of jealousy about her life at zero gravity. It is an e-book so except for the colour cover page there are only a couple of photos showing the Piaggio P-180.
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