Follow Your Dreams.

Once upon a time, there was a youngster, let’s call him “Alex”.

Alex was the son a of a good friend and, at an early age, showed an interest in aviation. At the time, I was the proud owner of a scarlet and silver, Tiger Moth biplane. I met Alex and his dad at the local airfield and we helped the youngster into the open cockpit, explaining the dials and the safety measures that needed to be taken. He paid great attention and was able to answer every question about what he had just been briefed without hesitation and demonstrate every action he had been shown. (A lesson for many adult airline passengers)

Alex and I wheeled about the skies of our district and when the flight was over, a broad smile stretched across his face. Fast forward to the closing years of his high school education and Alex’s passion hadn’t dimmed. I took him on board for his “work experience” and we flew again, this time to a regional airport where we visited maintenance facilities, air traffic control to broaden his knowledge of aviation. His subsequent high school results laid the world at his feet and, while not immediately apparent, he had obviously been bitten by the aviation bug.

From a distance and across a number of conversations, I watched Alex progress through his pilot training and then flying for a regional airline. He became a captain and then sought out a career with a major airline that saw him venture overseas. The ensuing years saw his experience grow until this week when he became a captain on the Boeing 777. His dream became a reality.

The most consistent emails, social media messages and enquiries from parents that I receive relate to careers in aviation. I share their enthusiasm, but I also make them well aware that it is a career that will call for dedication, study and scrutiny until the day you retire. For those that have travelled that path, these challenges are countered by a career of amazing memories and deep satisfaction. It is not a career for everybody, nor is it the career that many imagine it to be. However, having first flown solo 44 years ago, I cannot have imagined a career anywhere else, other than in the sky.

Congratulations Alex!

Follow your dreams.