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How Texas Heat Changes Flying — and the Best Times to Be in the Air Summer in North Texas is a wonderful time to fly. The long days provide plenty of daylight, and the mornings are often beautiful and flyable. However, the Texas heat genuinely changes how an airplane behaves. Knowing this ahead of time makes me a smarter, safer pilot. Here’s what every new (and not-so-new) pilot should keep in mind once the temperature climbs. I'm Barrett, and I run Harvey Aviation out of Pro

An honest answer — because ‘it depends’ isn't good enough When someone starts thinking seriously about learning to fly, two questions come up first: what does it cost, and how long does it take? I've already written honestly about the cost. So let's tackle time — not with a vague “it depends,” but with real ranges and the one thing that actually decides where you land. I'm Barrett, and I run Harvey Aviation out of Propwash Airport. The short answer Most people earn their Priv

The honest answer to the question everyone secretly wonders Almost everyone has looked at a heavy metal airplane and quietly wondered how on earth it stays in the air. It's one of the most common questions I get. The good news is that the basic idea is simpler than you'd think — and no, it isn't magic. Let me explain it the way I'd explain it to a brand-new student on day one. I'm Barrett, and I run Harvey Aviation out of Propwash Airport. The one-sentence answer An airplane

The honest heads-up I wish every new student got Your first flight lesson is a thrill — but a lot of people walk in not quite knowing what to expect, and the surprises, good and bad, can catch them off guard. So here's the honest list I'd give a friend the night before their first lesson. I'm Barrett, and I run Harvey Aviation out of Propwash Airport. Here's what nobody tells you. 1. You'll actually be flying the airplane. This isn't a sit-and-watch ride. Within the first few

How to figure out which one will actually get you to your license If you're trying to decide where to learn to fly, you'll mostly come across two kinds of options: a large flight school with a fleet of airplanes and a roster of instructors, or an independent instructor like me who works with you one-on-one. Both can absolutely get you to your license. But the experience is very different, and the right choice really does depend on you. So here's an honest comparison — includi

The straight truth from someone who teaches this every day A lot of people who would absolutely love to fly never give it a shot — not because they can't, but because they believe something about flying that simply isn't true. I hear these same myths all the time, and most of them talk talented people out of the cockpit before they ever try. Let me knock down the seven biggest ones, straight, so that if you decide flying isn't for you, at least it's for a real reason. I'm Bar

The story behind Harvey Aviation People don't really choose a flight instructor off a list of credentials. They choose someone they trust to teach them something hard, a little scary, and genuinely life-changing. So before you decide whether to fly with me, I think you deserve to know who I am and why I do this. I'm Barrett, the founder of Harvey Aviation. It started with machines I grew up in South Texas around hard work — my dad owns an oil and gas company, and getting your

An honest starter list — because every dollar not spent on gadgets is a dollar toward flight time Walk into a pilot shop and it's easy to leave $600 lighter with a bag full of things you don't need yet. The truth is you need surprisingly little to start flight training, and the money you don't spend on gadgets is money toward the flight hours that actually earn your license. Here's my honest take on what to buy, what to skip, and what you can get for free. Start here: the fre

Why a 1962 Skyhawk is one of the best airplanes in the world to learn in When you train with Harvey Aviation, you won't be handed whatever airplane happens to be free that day off a rental line. You'll learn in one specific airplane — my 1962 Cessna 172C, tail number N8424X — and you'll come to know it the way pilots are meant to know their aircraft. Let me introduce you. I'm Barrett, a flight instructor, and the owner of this airplane. I fly it, I maintain it, and I know its

What the journey actually looks like, start to finish — DFW edition Becoming a pilot can look like a mystery from the outside — a wall of regulations, tests, and flight hours that's hard to make sense of until you're in it. The truth is it's a clear, well-marked path, and ordinary people walk it every year. Here's the whole journey, step by step, so you know exactly what's ahead before you start. I'm Harvey, and I teach one student at a time at Harvey Aviation out of Propwash

A look inside your first hour at the controls So what is a discovery flight? A discovery flight is the simplest way to answer the question almost everyone who has ever looked up at an airplane has asked: could I actually do that? It isn't a tour, and it isn't a ride where you sit in the back. It's a real flight lesson — you in the pilot's seat, hands on the controls, with me right beside you walking you through every step. I'm Harvey, and I run Harvey Aviation out of Propwash

An Honest 2026 Breakdown The short answer If you live in the Dallas–Fort Worth area and you're wondering what it actually costs to earn your Private Pilot License, here's an honest range for 2026: plan for roughly $11,000 to $17,000, depending mostly on how often you fly. The good news is that a big part of that number is in your control. Fly with me three to four times a week and you have a real shot at finishing at or near the FAA's 40-hour minimum, which puts you at the lo