Unfortunately for me, acrophobia is also a major part of life.
Simply put, I don't like heights.
Although I thoroughly enjoy flying on big airliners, small planes still bug me. I don't like the instability, the single engine - and I don't like the all-too frequent instances of general aviation aircraft falling out of the sky.
Recently, ICON Aircraft introduced their new A5 light sport personal seaplane. It's a small two-seat amphibious plane that can take off and land from both the land and water. Based on the company's videos and photos, it looked pretty awesome.
The company made a couple of its planes and pilots available for demo flights over the Hudson River. The invitation was too good to pass up. But I was still hesitant. So I talked a videographer colleague of mine into going with me and take the test flight in my place.
Here's how it went.