Airline Pilot, Flight Attendant and Author
Hi, My name is Linda. I don’t have a husband or children, but I do have six
nieces and nephews whom I love very much. I live in Grand Junction,
Colorado, a small town near the Utah border. I am based here as a pilot
flying the Dash-8, a turboprop airplane, for a regional airline. I fly into high-
altitude ski towns in Colorado and Wyoming, and I also fly to Mexico. I have
been flying for six years, but working for a regional airline for one year. And
what a year it’s been! I have experienced every kind of weather
phenomenon: flying through snowstorms, diverting around thunderstorms,
bouncing around in gusty winds, landing in low visibility due to fog. This job
really keeps me on my toes.
My great grandfather was a barn stormer in Washington. He used to fly
from town to town, giving people rides in his Curtiss Jenny and performing
aerobatics. He died before I was born. I grew up wanting to be a writer and
a musician. I graduated college with a journalism degree and I’ve written for
many different newspapers and magazines. I play piano for fun. One day, I
wrote a story about a young flight instructor in the Bay Area who took me
for a flight over the Golden Gate Bridge. That flight stayed with me for a
long time. Several years later, when I could afford it, I took flight lessons. My
first flight instructor was a woman and she encouraged me to pursue it as a
career. She believed there weren’t enough women flying professionally. I
agree.
I am often misidentified as a flight attendant in the airports I fly to, but I
was a flight attendant for almost three years, so it doesn’t bother me at all.
I believe flight attendants have the hardest job on board. When the
passengers do find out that I’m actually flying the plane, the women on
board are thrilled. I’m not so sure about the men.
There was one flight I remember well, when two men were trying to talk
themselves into the fact that I, a petite blond-haired girl, was flying the
plane from Denver to Aspen on a bad weather day. The flight attendant told
me the details. One man was saying: “I’ve heard they don’t over-control the
airplane and that’s a good thing.” The other man responded, saying: “Yes,
and they have very good communication skills so that must be good too.”
Two days in a row, no airplanes had landed in Aspen because of bad
weather. This was the third day. The weather was still bad, but I broke out
of the clouds about 1.5 miles from the airport, immediately took the airplane
off autopilot, lost altitude as fast as I could, and did a soft touchdown to
land. Everyone on board cheered, including those two men. I’m hoping they
never doubt the skills of a woman pilot again.
Besides flying, I’m writing a novel about a flight attendant who wants to be a
pilot. I believe that any girl can fly the biggest or smallest airplane on earth. I
think it requires commitment and good study habits. Every girl should get a
college degree. For me, it’s most important to find something I am
passionate about because then the commitment is easy. Just remember,
there will be people along the way trying to discourage you from your
dreams. Don’t listen to them. Follow your own heart and make it happen.
Hi, My name is Linda. I don’t have a husband or children, but I do have six
nieces and nephews whom I love very much. I live in Grand Junction,
Colorado, a small town near the Utah border. I am based here as a pilot
flying the Dash-8, a turboprop airplane, for a regional airline. I fly into high-
altitude ski towns in Colorado and Wyoming, and I also fly to Mexico. I have
been flying for six years, but working for a regional airline for one year. And
what a year it’s been! I have experienced every kind of weather
phenomenon: flying through snowstorms, diverting around thunderstorms,
bouncing around in gusty winds, landing in low visibility due to fog. This job
really keeps me on my toes.
My great grandfather was a barn stormer in Washington. He used to fly
from town to town, giving people rides in his Curtiss Jenny and performing
aerobatics. He died before I was born. I grew up wanting to be a writer and
a musician. I graduated college with a journalism degree and I’ve written for
many different newspapers and magazines. I play piano for fun. One day, I
wrote a story about a young flight instructor in the Bay Area who took me
for a flight over the Golden Gate Bridge. That flight stayed with me for a
long time. Several years later, when I could afford it, I took flight lessons. My
first flight instructor was a woman and she encouraged me to pursue it as a
career. She believed there weren’t enough women flying professionally. I
agree.
I am often misidentified as a flight attendant in the airports I fly to, but I
was a flight attendant for almost three years, so it doesn’t bother me at all.
I believe flight attendants have the hardest job on board. When the
passengers do find out that I’m actually flying the plane, the women on
board are thrilled. I’m not so sure about the men.
There was one flight I remember well, when two men were trying to talk
themselves into the fact that I, a petite blond-haired girl, was flying the
plane from Denver to Aspen on a bad weather day. The flight attendant told
me the details. One man was saying: “I’ve heard they don’t over-control the
airplane and that’s a good thing.” The other man responded, saying: “Yes,
and they have very good communication skills so that must be good too.”
Two days in a row, no airplanes had landed in Aspen because of bad
weather. This was the third day. The weather was still bad, but I broke out
of the clouds about 1.5 miles from the airport, immediately took the airplane
off autopilot, lost altitude as fast as I could, and did a soft touchdown to
land. Everyone on board cheered, including those two men. I’m hoping they
never doubt the skills of a woman pilot again.
Besides flying, I’m writing a novel about a flight attendant who wants to be a
pilot. I believe that any girl can fly the biggest or smallest airplane on earth. I
think it requires commitment and good study habits. Every girl should get a
college degree. For me, it’s most important to find something I am
passionate about because then the commitment is easy. Just remember,
there will be people along the way trying to discourage you from your
dreams. Don’t listen to them. Follow your own heart and make it happen.
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