The best in Japan, the Aviation Club at Waseda won the 48th glider competition of All-Japan Students Glider Competition in March 2008. It had been 14 years since Waseda last won. We had a talk with two of the three pilots of the team, Yasukazu Yamazaki and Kohei Nishiyama. They are in different grades but are close friends.

Yasukazu Yamazaki seems to have a strong will hidden behind his casual manner of speaking while Kohei Nishiyama emits his intense dream through his serious eyes. They differ not only in character but also in terms of their reasons for joining the club. “It was just because I was invited to join. I was fascinated by feeling the world moving all under myself,” says Mr. Yamazaki laughing. Then Mr. Nishiyama says with a sparkle in his eyes, “I had wanted to become a pilot since I was a junior high school student. I practiced a flight in Australia for joining the aviation club before entering the university.” However much they differ, the two pilots somehow share something in common.
As to their recently becoming the top team in Japan, “I thought we had enough chances to win. I believed in the members’ ability,” says Mr. Yamazaki. “Though we are a team of three, we take off separately. We concentrate our effort towards the competition in the flight. We cannot neglect studying because we never know what will happen while we are flying.” “In addition, it is important to feel fun and have passion for flying,” continues Mr. Nishiyama. “Also, although we were the ones who made the flight, it was through the members working on the ground and the spiritual support of our friends encouraging us and our instructor leading us that allowed us to win.”
Actually, Mr. Nishiyama used to be afraid of heights. Mr. Yamazaki’s family is also afraid of high places. Nonetheless, they were fascinated by the sky and are willing to become a pilot. “I think it is a very important job that is responsible for the lives of passengers.” the younger says. Putting his hands on his shoulder says the senior, “We may see each other up in the sky some day.” Although they had different reasons when joining the club, their landing place seems to be the same.