Less than a year after Pastor Rick Cobb earned his Private Pilot certificate through Wings for Christ, he is planning his first international cross country flight. Rick and fellow missionary Todd Lovett will depart for Saltillo, Mexico on March 1st with a fresh annual inspection courtesy of WfC Chief of Maintenance Joel New.

Joel is quite familiar with Rick’s classic 1959 Cessna 172A. Rick bought the plane from Pastor Charles Henry, a long time friend of Wings for Christ. The blue on white fastback plane passed the annual with a few minor tweaks and is ready for the trip.

Rick and Todd will meet former WfC student Glenn Weid in Saltillo, who will drive them back to his home in Galeana, about two hours to the southeast. Once there, the men will visit many area towns and churches, give their testimonies, and look for ways that Rick’s church, Journey Christian Fellowship in China Spring, TX, can be supportive to area missions.

Rick’s flight instructor, Monte Michael, is excited for his student and knows that he is ready to go. “This is a ministry milestone that really is a culmination of what we are about here at Wings For Christ. I am so excited about this ministry extension of the vision and mission that Jesus has so graciously allowed us to be a part of.”

Pastor Rick has also taken his plane on several trips to west Texas to visit with pastors at new church plants. We are so glad to continue to be part of his training and pray for a safe journey to Mexico.

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Wednesday night (10/20/2010) it was all smiles at the Wings for Christ airport when student pilot Matt Dillon soloed for the first time. The day was picture perfect as the sun hung low in the West, just before sundown. Matt said that for the first time in his student pilot career, there was no crosswind at all and he buttered his first landing.

Matt knew that the solo attempt was going to be made that night, so his wife Kimberlie was able to watch and cheer him on. Also, a friend was in the area dove hunting and he stopped by as well to see Matt’s hard work pay off. Matt said, “The conditions couldn’t have been more perfect. Winds were calm and I had a great view of a gorgeous sunset. My wife and friends were on hand to support and congratulate me. My instructor, Monte, has invested a tremendous amount of time and care into preparing me for this day. God has gifted me the opportunity to pursue this passion of mine and I am thankful.”

Matt and Kim relocated to Waco from Duluth, Minnesota so that Matt could be a student pilot at Wings for Christ and Kim could attend graduate school at Baylor. Getting used to the Texas weather has been a challenge for Matt, who misses the crisp fall season of his home state. Kim, however, is glad to have a warmer climate to enjoy.

Monte Michael, Matt’s flight instructor, said that he has been a great student to work with. “Matt is a natural pilot and a very quick study,” Said Monte. “He told me that his solo flight experience was surreal. It was so smooth, that all he had to do was point and shoot and the plane did what it was supposed to do.”

Matt and Kim plan to enter the aviation mission field and serve overseas when their educations are completed in Waco. Until then, we are glad to have them in the Wings for Christ family.

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With a thumbs up and a grin big enough to see from fifty yards away, Pastor Rick Cobb became the nation’s newest private pilot and the most recent Wings for Christ student to earn his wings.

The day was almost perfect. Mostly calm winds (for Central Texas, anyway), big puffy clouds and bright blue skies welcomed Rick, his instructor Monte and FAA Flight Examiner John Foster when they met early in the morning of July 12 at the TSTC airport.

First was the oral exam, covering all areas of aeronautical knowledge that a private pilot is responsible for. The examiner was especially impressed with Rick’s cross-country flight planning skills. When asked to plot a route for a night flight, Rick chose to make safety a higher priority than efficiency. His route may have taken a bit longer to get to the final goal, but kept closer to alternate airports in case an emergency should present itself. Mr. Foster said that safety is always the best choice.

Next was the practical exam, where Pastor Rick had to demonstrate all of the maneuvers learned during his training and also show his navigation skills. All went well during the nearly two hour flight and when they returned to the airport Rick was on pins and needles as the examiner completed some paperwork. After a few nail biting moments, Rick was rewarded with the news that he had passed the exam and was now an official Private Pilot.

Pastor Rick began his training at WfC in December of 2009, soloed in April and completed his Private Pilot checkride just before noon on Monday, July 12. With a beaming smile and handshakes from everyone around, Rick said he was so happy to reach this milestone in his pilot training. But this is just the beginning.

Rick recently acquired a Cessna 172 and is making plans to transition up to the larger plane as soon as possible. He will start to build cross country time so that he can start his instrument training, therefore making his plans of flying between new church plants to be a pastor to other pastors more effective. The ability to fly between locations will greatly improve his ability to personally mentor and lead pastors of small churches across several states during a critical time in their development.

Pastor Rick and his wife Gloria want to thank Wings for Christ and all of our supporters for the assistance in his flight training and helping him to reach this important milestone in his flying career. After the excitement settled down and he had a moment to reflect on his accomplishment, Rick said that he and his wife, Gloria, want to encourage people to support WfC with their time and financial commitments because of the direct impact WfC has had on their ministry plans. “Without the help of Wings for Christ, I would not have been able to afford to learn to fly. Wings has been such a blessing to my wife and me,” said Rick. He also expressed his thankfulness for his flight instructor, Monte Michael. Monte donated many hours to help Rick complete his training schedule and prepare for the check ride. Also to be thanked are the maintenance volunteers that keep Gracie Bird flying. An airplane as old as Gracie needs almost an hour of maintenance for every hour she spends in the air.

Rick’s journey into aviation is just at the beginning, and Wings for Christ is glad to have played a part. Our prayer is for many years of successful flying and ministry for Rick and Gloria. Congratulations, Rick!

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