Air Tours (airplanes, hang gliders, and helicopters)

By Randall Shirley

Here are some crazy things I’ve done in airplanes…or less. Have you ever done anything crazy in the air? Comment below, please!

Ok...I admit I flipped the photo, taken near landing. But that's me waving, and just a few minutes early I WAS ACTUALLY FLYING UPSIDE DOWN! Photo: Kevin Spragg

1. Loop-the-loops in a Tiger Moth over Australia’s Great Ocean Road. This is one of those “you must be crazy” things to do, and I did it with a pilot named Patrick who didn’t look old enough for a driver’s license, let alone a pilot’s license. But Patrick and the 1930s-era aircraft took me for the ride of a life, doing two full sets of loops over some of Australia’s most-spectacular scenery. My partner said I was smiling like crazy when it ended. Either that or my face was frozen in a smile of terror. Highly recommended. Price for flying in Australia’s Tiger Moth: about $200. I flew with Tiger Moth World.

Randall Shirley in the front seat, pilot Patrick in the rear, just before flying and doing loop the loops in a Tiger Moth over Australia's Great Ocean Road. Photo © Randall Shirley

2. Hang Gliding over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. When I saw contestants do this on Season 2 of The Amazing Race, I knew one day I had to try it, too. It’s freaky as hell to run off the cliff of a perfectly-solid mountain, but as the ground dropped out from under my feet and I soared with hang glider pilot Klaus over the Brazilian beach a couple thousand feet below, I let out a whoop and enjoyed the feeling of being a bird for 15 minutes. Wow. Price for hang gliding in Rio: about $175. I flew with Rio Hang Gliding.

Hang gliding over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Randall Shirley on the left, pilot Klaus on the right. Yahoo!

A traveler / tourist hang glides with a pilot guide over a beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I flew shortly after this. Photo © Randall Shirley

3. Flying over glaciers, mountains, and lakes in Vancouver. Watching the nightly intros to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics on TV, I frequently said to whoever was in the room, “those panoramic shots of mountains and glaciers are beautiful, but I think they set an unrealistic expectation for visitors to my city. I’ve never seen that…and I don’t know anyone who has.” Times have changed. I now know that anyone willing to part with about $250 can see that same, magnificent scenery; I personally took the flight just last week. The Harbour Air floatplane even lands on Widgeon Lake, where for an extra $50 you can have a gourmet picnic. This is the single-best attraction I know of in Vancouver, and worth every penny (I flew with Harbour Air; Tourism Vancouver generously paid for this flight).

One of Vancouver's Harbour Air "Beaver" aircraft on Widgeon Lake, BC. Photo © Randall Shirley

4. Great Barrier Reef seaplane flight with snorkeling at a sandbar. Shortly after lifting off from Cairns Harbour I couldn’t believe my eyes: we flew just a couple hundred feet above the sea, and the formations of the Reef were easily visible. About 20 minutes out we reached the “outer reef” where pilot Alan “landed us” (shouldn’t it be “oceaned us”?) at a tiny sandbar, gave us snorkels and fins, and pointed us off the sand and into the planet’s most magnificent natural aquarium. Back on the sandbar the pilot toasted us with champagne and strawberries. Easily a fave. I flew with Cairns Seaplanes.

Cairns Seaplanes pilot Alan flies us above Australia's Great Barrier Reef (darker spots). Wow. Photo © Randall Shirley

Enjoying time at Australia's Great Barrier Reef. We were able to snorkel just off the other side of this small sandbar on the "outer reef." Photo © Randall Shirley

5. NYC Helicopter Flight. Nothing quite prepared me for circling the Statue of Liberty in a helicopter—easily the best part of this flight. It’s also the first part of the flight, and other than flying over the old Yankee Stadium the flight wasn’t that different than seeing NYC from the Empire State Building. But looking Lady Liberty in the eye for about $150…well, that makes it a fave. I flew with Liberty Helicopters.

Seeing the Statue of Liberty eye to eye was an eye-opening experience (bad, bad attempt at humor...but hey, you read this far? Good on ya!). Photo © Randall Shirley

Tags: air tours, Brazil, float plane, Hang Gliding, helicopter tour, New York, Rio, seaplane, Statue of Liberty, Vancouver