Monday, August 16, 1999
'Freedom of flying' keeps pilot in the air
Periodontist prefers view from single-engine plane
BY SUSAN VELA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Pilot Martha Cassity, of Florence, sits in the cockpit of her airplane, a single-engine 1975 Cessna Cardinal.
(Patrick Reddy photos)
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FLORENCE — As a single-engine Cessna pilot, Martha Cassity has experienced engine failure and, in turbulent conditions, seen her plane twist like a towel in the wind.
Yet these nerve-wracking flights have never kept the 53-year-old periodontist on the ground for long. Ms. Cassity, who specializes in gum diseases, said she prefers to face her fears rather than give up flying.
“It's just the freedom of flying. It's pure joy,” said Ms. Cassity, a Florence resident who began a periodontal practice there about 10 years ago. Murphy, a miniature schnauzer, often is her companion.
She has been flying for 15 years and has piloted planes to Canada and Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina and Oregon. Ms. Cassity, who also enjoys kayaking and backpacking, cannot imagine a vacation that doesn't include being in the air.
“My vacation was the flight,” she said of a recent trip to Oregon. “I work hard; I play hard. If I had to lie on a beach, I'd go nuts.”
The 1963 graduate of Somerset High School has always loved a challenge but admits that fear was the main motivator behind her pursuit of a pilot's license.
Ms. Cassity's ex-husband flew single-engine planes and, while they were married, she often was in the passenger seat. But she became fearful that something would happen to him — perhaps a heart attack — while they were in mid-air and she wouldn't know what to do.
“Because of that fear, I went out to take lessons and became a pilot,” she said.
After the first few lessons, she had enough knowledge to “walk away from the plane,” meaning that she would be able to land it.
Needless to say, that wasn't enough. She signed up for more instruction and now is licensed to fly under visual flight and instrument rules. She has received all the licensing that is available for single-engine pilots.
Ms. Cassity also knows plane maintenance, which she sought out at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College soon after she moved to Northern Kentucky from the Lexington area.
The mother of two adults said that she has tried instilling this attitude in her children: “It's not what you want to do. It's, "do you want to do it bad enough?'”
The plane that she now owns with her ex-husband is a 1975 Cessna Cardinal, which has a 180-horsepower engine. It is kept in Georgetown, near where she lived for almost three decades before moving to Northern Kentucky.
She flies the plane at least once a week, often leaving her periodontal office at the end of the day for a chance to fly.
Before a recent trip, she pulled the plane out of its hangar and did a “walk around” — or check — of the plane, which included manually rotating its front propeller so that its pistons would be well oiled before takeoff.
With dog Murphy in the back seat, Ms. Cassity started the plane's engine, taxied down the runway and piloted the plane into the air. Flying toward Frankfort, she took the time to point out individual cities, her old subdivision and horse farms.
She also took a gander at the lakes but was disappointed to see there generally was too much moss for kayaking. The scenery below, including the orderly grid of city streets, appeared tranquil.
“I love to get up and see the world from (this) perspective and know you've done it on your own,” she said. “I get to see it all. It's just a sense of accomplishment.”
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