Hello HIVE community, my name is Branko Bitoraje, I’m 27 years old and I’m an Aviation Pilot. I'm from Mérida, Venezuela, one of the most beautiful cities in the country, due to its climate, people and geography, Mérida is located in the valley of the Chama’s river right at the end of the Andes mountain range, the longest mountain range in the world, stretching from the Patagonia to the Caribbean Sea.
From a very early age I was passionate about aviation, Ever since I was a kid my father took me to the airport to see the airplanes take off and land, that interest led me to study hard on this subject, since I was 14 years old. Little by little, many doors opened to me, aviation is a beautiful world in which you never stop learning, and you always met new places and new people. You just need a lot of dedication, time and study A LOT. This is me 15 years old with my future job behind me.
The first time I managed to fly on my own a small plane was in 2013 when I was 20 years old, thanks to a pilot friend who was kind enough to invite me on and let me take the flight controls in the air, since then I have been increasingly involved in this world, meeting more pilot friends, studying, and learning the English language, little by little making my way.
inally in 2018 with a lot of financial effort and after completing my theoretical course and my flight school hours I got my private pilot license in an aeronautical school in Valencia, Carabobo state (central Venezuela).
That same year together with a friend who also is a pilot we went to Maracaibo, Zulia state (West coast of Venezuela)to get more flight experience and do more hours. In aviation your level is dictated by your number of flight hours because it is like the experience you accumulate in your career, also the more flight hours you have, the more pro efficient you will be.
Besides in your pilot license you need a certain amount of flight hours to fly certain types of airplanes. Usually you start to fly small planes and as you accumulate more flight hours (experience) you can choose to fly larger planes, with more engines, more weight, etc. I currently have 130h of flight as pilot in command.
In 2019 I started working on my own, flying for a local company in Mérida that has his own private plane in order to his CEO be able to travel , it was a perfect job because it was a small a Cessna 182 (it carries 4 people) which with my type of license I was able to fly, and had the necessary experience. Most flights were from Mérida to San Antonio del Táchira, El Vigía (nearby towns)and Maracaibo. They have been spectacular experiences, flying in this mountainous Andean area has its own risks and tricks but also its very rewarding, the views are AMAZING.
Unfortunately, the year 2020 has arrived and the covid 19 pandemic paralyzed private aviation air operations throughout the country indefinitely, and not only in Venezuela but also in the rest of the world there have been certain levels of restrictions on air transport.
My last flight , January 2020 as a Copilot
However, this is a world in which you always have to keep up to date with knowledge; in 2020 I was very active with home flight simulators, which have advanced a lot in recent years. To the point that they generate a virtual world in which you can recreate real flights, so you can always maintain pro efficiency.
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So good that is part of my story, I hope to share topics related to aviation, airplanes, experiences I have had, anecdotes and teach you how wonderful this world is, greetings HIVE community !.
