For most teens, turning 16 means they will be getting a permit to drive a car. For one Plainsboro teen, however, driving a car is coming second to a set of wings.
Taking flying lessons since his 14th birthday, Vikram Ganti trained for the past two years up until his 16th birthday on January 27 — when he soloed at Princeton Airport. In preparation for the occasion, Vikram logged a total of 30 hours in the air.
Ganti took his first solo flight that day — 16 is the minimum age to fly alone, set by the Federal Aviation Administration — after first completing two circuits with his instructor, as his parents, Padmaja and Prasad watched from the tarmac.
But flying is not a new concept for the Ganti family. Ganti’s father, Prasad, has been flying at Princeton Airport since 1998, when he earned his private pilot’s license, and has a total flight time of 380 hours. Prasad Ganti, a software developer for a bank in New York City, and his wife, Padmaja, who works part-time doing clerical work, moved to Plainsboro with their son 11 years ago from Edison.
Ganti says he discusses flying with his father, especially while he’s reading his instruction textbook, but rarely flies with his father. “He doesn’t like backseat drivers, so it gets kind of boring,” Ganti explains.
Still, Prasad Ganti called his son’s ability to solo at age 16 a great achievement. “This is not something with which you can achieve gratification,” he said. “It takes a lot of training.” And since flying is challenging sometimes, he is glad his son also followed through and never gave up.
“If you have a dream, don’t give up on it,” his son said. Ganti has become only the 37th student in the Raritan Valley Flying School’s history to have flown solo for his or her 16th birthday. The school operates out of Princeton Airport.
Now Ganti is looking forward to his 17th birthday, when he has the opportunity to earn his private pilot’s license. To accomplish this, he will have to continue with the curriculum, including more solo flights, night flying, simulated instrument flying, flights alone with a minimum of 50 nautical miles, and more.
He will then have to pass the FAA knowledge exam and at the end, when all his requirements are met, he will have to fly with an FAA designated examiner, who will issue him his license. Then, the next decision is deciding who will become his first passenger.
Aside from flying, Ganti, a sophomore at High School North, is on the varsity swim team, with his strength in the distance freestyle. He also is an accomplished pianist and prefers contemporary music and making videos for YouTube.com. His favorite courses are math and science, and he has aspirations of one day becoming a professional pilot, with a goal of attending the Air Force Academy.
Said Ganti, recalling a quotation he read: “There is an art or knack to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.”
