My school, in another attempt to destroy the lives of us students, decided to have a "parents weekend." My parents have been invited to sit in on my classes and they were told they could go flying with me. The classes are going to be given to parents only, so I'm not worried about that but the flying is an issue.Here's the deal: I can't take both of my parents flying at the same time because that will put me over max gross takeoff weight. I could take them flying individually but that's still not the main issue. My mom is the issue. She cannot comprehend limits and she thinks she can ride in a small aircraft with no problem. But here's the issues:1. She is physically incapable of getting into the aircraft that I fly,2. She gets motion sickness on commercial airliners and that's not even a fraction of the amount of turbulence and "rough flight" that is encountered in a light aircraft and,3. She is trying to pressure me into allowing this to happen. She sent me an email yesterday saying that she would be "heartbroken" if she didn't get the opportunity to fly with me.I have no idea how to tell her and explain to her that she will not be able to go with me. She is going to call me tomorrow and I have no idea how to break the new to her. Does anyone have an idea of how I can make her get it?
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I have no idea what to do...
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I think you should explain to her exactly what you've explained in your post. It's pretty clear and easy to understand. Make sure she knows the consequences of trying to fly and of actually flying with you. Then let her make her own decision. She's an adult so she gets to make the decision and then own the consequences of her decision. It shouldn't be this tough for you, meaning don't take on yourself what she should be taking on herself.Good luck.
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This sort of thing needs a lot of tact - and of course some people are not good at taking hints. Don't put it in the form "I will not allow it". Try "you will find it a severe trial".What is the physical difficulty of her getting into the plane? The seat width? You should warn her that she will be cramped, probably beyond endurance.Warn her about the turbulence and that she can expect to be heaving into a bag and feeling like death would be a release through the whole flight.Ultimately, if she wants to go anyway, you have to suck it up. If she really can't physically get in the aircraft she won't be able to, but probably the only way to prove it to her will be for her to try, embarrassing though that may be. If she is sick I'm afraid you'll have to put up with that. Bring strong waterproof bags.
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Thanks for the ideas. I was contemplating but I guess I will just let her find out for herself...This aircraft is designed for smaller people in the back seat. For insurance reasons, I can't fly the plane without an instructor in the front seat so there's nowhere else for her to sit, except the back. Her physical size and weight make it impossible for her to climb into the back seat, not to mention that she has to first climb onto the wing (she has trouble just getting into a regular pickup truck). Then she's going to have to crouch down and climb into the back seat. She is not small enough or strong enough to accomplish such tasks. This is going to mentally destroy her, and watching her in that state is absolutely horrifying (she's done things like this before). I guess we're just going to have to deal with it.