Although students sometimes try to deny it, teachers do in fact have lives outside of school. For example, law and web design teacher Patricia Bruegger likes to fly airplanes.

Bruegger started training and flying five years ago. “It’s very empowering to be a pilot,” she said. She learned of flying from one of her previous students. They kept in touch after he graduated from Gunn, and she learned that he eventually became a commercial airline pilot. The student inspired Bruegger to begin training at the Palo Alto Airport.

Two years ago, Bruegger received her private pilot’s license. According to her, the difficult part of obtaining a license was having the courage to actually take the flying test. “It takes a combination of faith and guts,” she said.

The Federal Aviation Administration requires pilots-in-training to fulfill many requirements, including passing a written exam, having a Certified Flying Instructor (CFI). Before actually taking the flying test, Bruegger had to be able to fly solo without her instructor, fly and land at night and talk with air traffic controls. When she met these requirements, her CFI signed off on each. When Bruegger was ready, she set up an appointment for the actual test. “Overall I think my entire training went well,” she said. “I have to say the happiest day of my life was when I earned my private pilot’s license.”

Some of Bruegger’s favorite places to fly over are the San Francisco Bay and Alcatraz area. As a licensed pilot, Bruegger is allowed to take passengers with her on flights. “My friends and family are definitely amazed by and like flying,” Bruegger said. “They want to go flying with me. It’s fun when people are with you.” Her friends and family aside, Bruegger also sometimes flies with fellow pilot senior Jacob Savage.

Bruegger is a member of a flying club called the Advantage Aviation, which is located at the Palo Alto Airport. Members are able to rent the planes in the fleet to fly. She is also a member of a women’s aviation club called The Ninety-Nines, a club that elected Amelia Earhart as the first president in 1931.

There are two types of planes: a plane with top wings, which has its wings on the top of the plane, and a plane with low wings, which has its wings at the bottom of the plane and requires a fuel pump. “I’ve heard of those pumps failing before,” Bruegger said. In top wings, the fuel is in the wings and goes into the engine by gravity. Bruegger enjoys flying planes with top wings the most. “I also like being able to see the view below me,” she said.

But being a pilot isn’t always as fun as it seems; pilots can find themselves in potentially dangerous situations. Bruegger has experienced this firsthand. “I was turning to approach the final leg of the runway to land and another pilot cut in front of me,” Bruegger said. “The air traffic controls were yelling at him and I had to take quick action to go around him.”

Another time, when she was taxiing for take off, she had a feeling that something was wrong with the engine. “I slammed on the brakes and there was just enough runway [for me to stop],” she said. “I’m a safe pilot.” According to Bruegger, sometimes, when a pilot ignores the signs, he or she ends up with troubles with the engine and hasdifficulty landing safely. “You have to constantly be aware of everything,” she said.

Bruegger intends on continuing her flying hobby in the future. “Inspiration comes from my desire to continue to learn new things about flying,” she said. Some goals include getting her instrument rating and multi-engine rating. An instrument rating allows a pilot to fly without looking out the windshield or flying by using the instruments alone. A multi-engine rating allows a pilot to fly a plane that has more than one engine.

Apart from these more minor goals, Bruegger also has a more lofty flying goal she wants to complete. “I want to fly across the country,” she said.