Pastors Flight With Caiden Spears

Flying my Pastor and being the pilot in command of the aircraft was one of the best experiences since becoming a licensed pilot. When I was 15 years old I told my flight instructor I wanted to take my Pastor the Rev. Dr. Stephen W. Pogue of Greater Centennial A.M.E Zion Church on a flight. Pastor Pogue knew I was studying for my pilot license and always told me and our congregation that he was ready to fly with me and he would say “at least I know Caiden, I don’t know the other pilots I’ve flown with”. He would say that a lot. I was amazed that he had a lot of confidence in me. When I told my instructor of my plan he came up with a better idea and said why don’t you wait until you get your license and you can fly him without me. He told me that I would be solely in charge of the aircraft without an instructor on board. That sounded like a better idea and a way to show my Pastor all that I knew.

On May 11th 2024, I passed my oral exam and on May 25, 2024, I passed my check ride with the Designated Pilot Examiner where I had to fly and do different maneuvers over the Long Island Sound. I earned my Private Pilot License on that day at the age of 17, making me the youngest African American male in NY with a Pilot license. On June 1, 2024 I graduated from Cardinal Hayes HS in the Bronx and moved over 1000 miles away on June 3rd to attend flight school in Olive Branch, Mississippi. As a Private pilot, I could now rent the airplane that I was trained to fly without an instructor because now that I was licensed I am now the pilot in command of whatever aircraft I rent. I told my mom that I wanted to return to NY and fly Pastor Pogue as promised. I went on the computer and rented a Piper Archer (N727AC) and paid for the insurance. On July 3rd Pastor Pogue showed up at Republic Airport ready to fly. He was excited and so was I. It was a beautiful summer evening to take a flight. He watched me do my preflight checklists and while on the aircraft I gave the safety briefing and prepared for takeoff. Before take off, my mom’s headset was not working so we had to shut the plane down, leave the aircraft, and return to the flight school to get a new headset. All passengers must have working headsets per FAA guidelines. We took care of that glitch and were now prepared for takeoff around 6 pm. We took off using runway 32 from Republic Airport. Our destination was Brookhaven Airport. Pastor had an amazing view of the coast with turquoise waters and he took many photos. I was also able to record the entire flight. Brookhaven Airport is an “unmanned” airport which means that there are no control towers so the pilots have to basically look out for and communicate their positions to each other. We landed at Brookhaven airport around 7 pm. The airport was calm and not a lot of flight traffic. It is a very nice low key airport with 1 restaraunt. We wanted to get what’s known as a “$200 hamburger” but the restaurant was closing for the day.

I was excited that everything went as planned. It was now time to fly back to Farmingdale Airport. Our flight went well and Pastor Pogue had the opportunity to take control of the plane during the cruise portion of the flight. This was definitely a rewarding and unforgettable experience. Not many teen pilots get the honor of renting an airplane and flying their pastor. I am so glad that I did. I will never forget this day.

Caiden Spears, Licensed Private Pilot

Future Boeing 777 Captain