Dylan Finds Paradise

Chances are, you've recently read about Jessica Cox, a young lady who received her Sport Pilot rating in an Ercoupe...even though she was born without arms. We're really excited for her and the contributions she is making to aviation!

Although the Ercoupe was the perfect aircraft for Jessica, as a low-wing aircraft it would be a little less convenient for someone who doesn't have the use of his or her legs. Ercoupes are also vintage aircraft and generally lack the niceties of many new LSAs on the market. Both of these issues were concerns of Dylan Redd, an aspiring pilot who gets around with the help of a wheel chair. One of the main reasons I went to the Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring this year was to learn more about Dylan and his experience with Paradise. You can read his story in his own words on the Aviation Portal, but I'm going to tell the story again here in hopes that more people will get to read it.

Dylan broke his back in 1999 and ended up losing the use of his legs. Not one to give up on life, he started a medical equipment supply company, called QualityMed Inc., and became very successful.

That gave him the means to be ready for an encounter with Mitch Hansen of the Hansen Air Group, a Light Sport Aircraft flight school. The Hansen Air Group specializes in instruction for disabled pilots using a Sky Arrow 600. Mitch invited Dylan to check out his operation and Dylan was hooked before he even started flying.

Dylan decided that he'd want to purchase his own plane and did a lot of shopping. In the end, it came down to the Paradise P-1. In his words Dylan said, "To me the Paradise seemed 'the class of the field.' I liked the all metal hull, roomy interior, and great range made this the obvious choice for me. In most light sport planes there is simply no room for myself, a passenger, overnight bag, and my chair." He's right...looking around the offerings at the Expo, it was obvious that it would be tough to fit a wheel chair along with anything else in many of the LSAs on today's market. Sadly, Hansen's Sky Arrow was definitely not an option. Paradise's P-1 has more than enough room for everything Dylan could want to bring on a trip.

Dylan mentions that Paradise's staff, "Paulo, and Chris are very nice and were very willing to work with me on designing the custom hand controls necessary for me to control the rudder and throttle." Based on meeting and corresponding with them, this is an understatement. Chris is fiercely proud of his aircraft, the modifications they have been able to do for Dylan, and the potential their new P-1 SP model has to open flying up to a group who could almost never consider it before. I have no doubt they have been bending over backwards to make Dylan's experience a positive one.

Dylan's plane features an extra hand controller on the center console behind the throttle for rudder control. A hand-activated dual wheel brake is located on the floor directly in front of the pilot's seat. The right seat has standard rudder pedals and toe brakes in case he wants to take a hand flying, but the pilot's seat has no rudder pedals. A brand-new Garmin GPSMAP 696 is panel mounted, giving Dylan a wealth of information and navigation at his fingertips. The paint is custom and if you like the color ask for it by name: Dylan Redd (of course!)

I wanted to interview Dylan, but I got to the Expo late. When I arrived, Dylan was busy flying...enjoying his new plane with Paulo! He took at delivery of his P-1 SP at The Expo and Paradise designer/founder/CEO Noe Oliveira came out all the way from Brazil to complete the process. I got to talk to Noe for a bit and he is also very proud of their new aircraft and the opportunities it opens up for potential pilots. He decided to offer planes like Dylan's as new factory model.

I'm personally very excited about Dylan's new plane and the fact that the P-1 SP model available to any pilot as a brand-new factory aircraft. Chris Regis couldn't say enough good things about Dylan. He was impressed by Dylan's tenacity, but categorized him as very humble. I'm proud and thankful for the leadership of people like Dylan Redd and Jessica Cox. I hate being told that something is impossible for me and it looks like they do too. They both took situations that most people would consider impossible and became licensed pilots. If that isn't inspirational, I don't know what is.

Now that we have a production aircraft equipped for disabled individuals, a flight school that loves to train them and examples of people who have taken advantage of both, I'm looking forward to hearing how the numbers of newly-enabled pilots continue to grow. We'll let you know as we hear more.

(Cockpit picture provided by Kapturedbykatara.com with permission from Paradise Aircraft)