Lari White News

(9/ 9/98, 12 p.m. PDT) - Country singer Lari White may be flying high with the release of her Lyric Street debut, Stepping Stone, but she's not taking wing in the wide blue yonder--at least, not as the pilot of her own aircraft.

White and husband Chuck Cannon both pursued pilot's licenses, until pregnancy forced White to forego her flying dreams, at least for now. White even got as far as soloing, but with the birth of daughter M'Kenzy, she's been grounded for the past year and a half, though Cannon is now licensed to fly.

Flying solo was intimidating because of the responsibility it conveyed. "The first time you fly by yourself you know you're solely responsible for an expensive aircraft. You're not told by your instructor when you're going to take your first solo flight; when they feel like you're ready, they are the ones who initiate it.

"I had taken what I thought was a regular lesson. We did a landing and the instructor said, 'Okay, pull of the runway, I'm going to get out and you're going to do your solo flight.' Your heart jumps in your throat!

"I thought I would be terrified, but I was completely cool and calm and collected until I got 200 feet in the air, pulled back on the yoke, and looked down. I was right over the Cumberland River, and it just flashed through my mind, 'There is no way for me get back on the ground except for me to land this plane!' I had that momentary panic, a reality check, but it went great."

Now that she's a mom, "I feel like I can't be as adventurous," White noted, though she says she still loves to fly. "It's a blast and I will be getting my pilot's license someday," she told myLAUNCH.

-- Lisa Zhito, Nashville