Georgia man with a spinal cord injury is a certified pilot

Architect Jorge Urrea, of Smyrna, Ga., said his childhood dream was to fly airplanes.  Fifteen years ago, however, he was involved in a motorcycle accident in which he sustained a complete spinal cord injury at the T-6/9 level.  It initially seemed like the end of Urrea's dream.

Through Able Flight, a North Carolina-based nonprofit, Urrea discovered it didn't matter that he used a wheelchair; he still had an opportunity to learn to fly. The organization gave him a full scholarship to earn his Sport Pilot Certificate.  Urrea said not only was he trained by great instructors, but Able Flight also found an airplane with hand controls that allowed him to work the rudders with his hand.

As outlined on the nonprofit's Web site:  "Able Flight's mission is to offer people with disabilities a unique way to challenge themselves through flight training, and by doing so, to gain greater self-confidence and self-reliance."

Urrea strongly urged people with disabilities to check into the Able Flight program.

"Learning how to fly showed me that being in a wheelchair was not the end of my active life," he explained.  "Even being in a wheelchair, I can break barriers and reach my dreams."

Having earned his certificate this past February, Urrea said he tries to fly at least every two weeks depending on weather, time and money. When he does, he rents a light sport airplane with two seats called a Sky Arrow 600. 

"I feel like a normal person, especially when I am in the airplane. I can leave my wheelchair on the ground and soar in the air alone.  When I am in the airplane, I have no need of my wheelchair and I feel free."  Urrea concluded, "Being a pilot means I can do things that even normal people can't, because I'm special."