Hitchhiking the sky
Hitchhiking is an option for the courageous that will almost always guarantee an adventure of some sort but have you ever considered taking it to the air? Your hitchhiking possiblities could be instantly expanded.
In Ed Buryn’s Vagabonding in America he briefly mentions hitchhiking in airplanes. Hitching in this fashion would definitely give you the advantage of covering a vast amount of distance in no time with fantastic overhead views. It grabbed my attention, but do people actually do this?
Airhitch is an organization that offers “hitchhiking” on commercial planes mostly between the U.S. and Europe for a discounted price. Not exactly in the hitchhiking spirit (communication is handled through AIM chatrooms and the costs are still substantial), but it might be able to save you money on a flight if you’re willing to be flexible. Be warned though, Airhitch has several complaints against them. Research is recommended.
Still unsatisified, a google search then took me to Martha Esch who in 1988, hitchhiked antique planes to 48 states for six months and is now in the process of writing a book about it. The statistics, from her site: 199 pilots, in over 200 vintage aeroplanes, 330 flights, 29,117 miles through 48 states, 183 days, 9 marriage proposals. The best part: 1000 new friends.
Strangely enough, her initial inspiration was sparked by that same Ed Buryn book. In it he writes:
“…Go to a private airfield and try to spot someone getting ready to fly his plane. Sometimes you can find pilots filing their flight plans at a control tower or a desk. Sometimes you’ll see them gassing up. Sometimes you’ll see them untying their planes. Ask them if they’re flying out and would like a passenger. Sometimes they’ll say yes, sometimes they’ll say no…”
So it’s possible. Or at least it was possible. Sounds easy enough with thousands of general aviation airports all over the world.
I would love to hear from anyone who has actually done this in the 21st century. Also, pilots, it would be great to hear your thoughts on hitchhikers in the hanger. Send them in!
March 30th, 2011 at 9:59 pm
i did this in the 70’s once. i was hitchhiking from new orleans with a girl i met there, and we got stuck in a small town in louisiana. she saw a small airport and got us there, and started chatting up pilots. an hour later we were in a six person jet with an oil executive, on a 200 mile flight to houston. i think it took us longer to hitchhike out of the houston airport than the jet flight. she had learned how to do it from a small-aircraft pilot friend who took her to meigs field in chicago and talked with different pilots about trips they were taking, and got offered flights to buffalo, etc. i’d like to try it again sometime.