Airline Pilot and Author
My name is Lynn Spencer and I am delighted to have the opportunity to
mentor our next generation of girls with wings. Whether you are 13 or 23,
you have many exciting opportunities available to you as a pilot!
I have been passionate about flying and airplanes ever since I can
remember. Growing up, I loved airports and airplanes . . . but I also
assumed that everyone else did, too. I realized that my interest in airplanes
was perhaps not typical when I was in elementary school and visited
Washington, D.C. with my family. We visited all kinds of museums and
monuments, but what I remember being most excited about was walking
the national mall and watching all the planes flying low overhead as they
came in to land at Washington's Reagan National Airport. It didn't matter
where we were or what we were looking at, I would have to stop and watch
every single plane . . . and identify it for my family. It became annoying for
them, but for me, I was in heaven watching those planes fly right over my
head.
The moment when I knew that I had to be a pilot came several years later
when my father took me to an EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) Air
Show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, when I was in 6th grade. I liked all the planes
. . . but the jets really got my attention, and when I watched the
demonstration flight for the F-14 Tomcat, I was hooked. I wanted to fly
jets . . . military ones preferably. I aimed for the Air Force Academy, and
was disappointed to learn that as a female with contact lens, I was not
going to fly fighters. They advised me that the best I could hope for (if I
got lucky) would be to navigate reconnaissance. I knew that I would never
be satisfied working the radios in some pilot's back seat, so I gave up my
dream for more "practical" pursuits.
It was not until age 28 that I realized that I had let a big part of myself die
when I gave up my dream of becoming an airline pilot. I investigated and
found out that I could still be an airline pilot even though I was not military.
There were flight schools to teach people how to be professional pilots.
Two weeks later, I was enrolled in Private Pilot Ground School. The week
after my first ground school ended, I started flight school full time. In
eighteen months, I earned my Private Pilot Certificate, Instrument Rating,
Multi-Engine Rating, Commercial Certificate, and then Certified Flight
Instructor Certificates. I was finally earning a living teaching others how to
fly planes.
I spent three years flight instructing and flying corporately until I was hired
by an airline in 1999. I have very much enjoyed airline flying, and have been
fortunate to work for a great company. Yes, every now and then I am
mistaken for a flight attendant. We still make up a very small percentage of
pilots, so I imagine it will take some time before that no longer happens.
In the cockpit, the Captain and First Officer trade off flying every other
flight. The Captain sits in the left seat and the First Officer in the right seat.
The pilot who is not doing the flying works the radios. It might sound
funny, but I enjoy both. I have always enjoyed the "pilot talk" on the radio.
It's like its own language and it's fun to know the lingo. A good memory
helps as an airline pilot because you often receive long clearances that you
have to read back to the air traffic controllers. (For example, "Jetlink 4348,
turn right to 3-0-0, maintain 1-8-0, cleared for the ILS 27, contact tower
at 118.7.") Taxi instructions at the bigger airports can also get crazy . . .
so it's good to have a pen handy.
There are a lot of benefits to being an airline pilot. First, I am paid to do
something that I love, so it really does not seem like work. Second, I'm not
sitting at a desk every day from 8 to 5. Instead, I travel and work only
11-12 days per month (you'll work more than that until you have earned
some seniority). Lastly, as an airline pilot, my children and my parents get
passes to fly anywhere in the world for just about free. This is perhaps the
best perk, since I love to travel and explore.
For the past several years, I used my knowledge and love of aviation and
our airline industry to do something completely different: I researched and
wrote a book about the aviation perspective of 9-11. The book is called
Touching History: The Untold Stories of the Drama that Unfolded in the
Skies over America on 9/11. I traveled around the country talking to airline
and fighter pilots, air traffic controllers, FAA managers and military
commanders. It made me very proud, and I learned that as tragic that day
was, it could have been much worse if not for the courage, dedication and
resourcefulness of so many of these people. I have missed flying and look
forward to returning to the cockpit soon.
To all the girls and young women out there, if you love airplanes and flying,
then DO IT! Don't let anyone turn you away from this dream. Flying
airplanes is an incredible and rewarding career, and it can and does work
with having a family. My kids say that I inspire them to follow their own
dreams and I can only hope that is true. Find your dreams and make them
yours! Have the courage to take a chance and make a change and choose
your destiny. You will never
regret it.
Lynn Spencer
Pilot/Author
www.touchinghistory911.com
My name is Lynn Spencer and I am delighted to have the opportunity to
mentor our next generation of girls with wings. Whether you are 13 or 23,
you have many exciting opportunities available to you as a pilot!
I have been passionate about flying and airplanes ever since I can
remember. Growing up, I loved airports and airplanes . . . but I also
assumed that everyone else did, too. I realized that my interest in airplanes
was perhaps not typical when I was in elementary school and visited
Washington, D.C. with my family. We visited all kinds of museums and
monuments, but what I remember being most excited about was walking
the national mall and watching all the planes flying low overhead as they
came in to land at Washington's Reagan National Airport. It didn't matter
where we were or what we were looking at, I would have to stop and watch
every single plane . . . and identify it for my family. It became annoying for
them, but for me, I was in heaven watching those planes fly right over my
head.
The moment when I knew that I had to be a pilot came several years later
when my father took me to an EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) Air
Show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, when I was in 6th grade. I liked all the planes
. . . but the jets really got my attention, and when I watched the
demonstration flight for the F-14 Tomcat, I was hooked. I wanted to fly
jets . . . military ones preferably. I aimed for the Air Force Academy, and
was disappointed to learn that as a female with contact lens, I was not
going to fly fighters. They advised me that the best I could hope for (if I
got lucky) would be to navigate reconnaissance. I knew that I would never
be satisfied working the radios in some pilot's back seat, so I gave up my
dream for more "practical" pursuits.
It was not until age 28 that I realized that I had let a big part of myself die
when I gave up my dream of becoming an airline pilot. I investigated and
found out that I could still be an airline pilot even though I was not military.
There were flight schools to teach people how to be professional pilots.
Two weeks later, I was enrolled in Private Pilot Ground School. The week
after my first ground school ended, I started flight school full time. In
eighteen months, I earned my Private Pilot Certificate, Instrument Rating,
Multi-Engine Rating, Commercial Certificate, and then Certified Flight
Instructor Certificates. I was finally earning a living teaching others how to
fly planes.
I spent three years flight instructing and flying corporately until I was hired
by an airline in 1999. I have very much enjoyed airline flying, and have been
fortunate to work for a great company. Yes, every now and then I am
mistaken for a flight attendant. We still make up a very small percentage of
pilots, so I imagine it will take some time before that no longer happens.
In the cockpit, the Captain and First Officer trade off flying every other
flight. The Captain sits in the left seat and the First Officer in the right seat.
The pilot who is not doing the flying works the radios. It might sound
funny, but I enjoy both. I have always enjoyed the "pilot talk" on the radio.
It's like its own language and it's fun to know the lingo. A good memory
helps as an airline pilot because you often receive long clearances that you
have to read back to the air traffic controllers. (For example, "Jetlink 4348,
turn right to 3-0-0, maintain 1-8-0, cleared for the ILS 27, contact tower
at 118.7.") Taxi instructions at the bigger airports can also get crazy . . .
so it's good to have a pen handy.
There are a lot of benefits to being an airline pilot. First, I am paid to do
something that I love, so it really does not seem like work. Second, I'm not
sitting at a desk every day from 8 to 5. Instead, I travel and work only
11-12 days per month (you'll work more than that until you have earned
some seniority). Lastly, as an airline pilot, my children and my parents get
passes to fly anywhere in the world for just about free. This is perhaps the
best perk, since I love to travel and explore.
For the past several years, I used my knowledge and love of aviation and
our airline industry to do something completely different: I researched and
wrote a book about the aviation perspective of 9-11. The book is called
Touching History: The Untold Stories of the Drama that Unfolded in the
Skies over America on 9/11. I traveled around the country talking to airline
and fighter pilots, air traffic controllers, FAA managers and military
commanders. It made me very proud, and I learned that as tragic that day
was, it could have been much worse if not for the courage, dedication and
resourcefulness of so many of these people. I have missed flying and look
forward to returning to the cockpit soon.
To all the girls and young women out there, if you love airplanes and flying,
then DO IT! Don't let anyone turn you away from this dream. Flying
airplanes is an incredible and rewarding career, and it can and does work
with having a family. My kids say that I inspire them to follow their own
dreams and I can only hope that is true. Find your dreams and make them
yours! Have the courage to take a chance and make a change and choose
your destiny. You will never
regret it.
Lynn Spencer
Pilot/Author
www.touchinghistory911.com
 |
| Using aviation to entertain and educate girls about their limitless opportunities... |
| Becky is written up in her local paper |
TM
| Using aviation to entertain and educate girls about their limitless opportunities... |
TM
| Using aviation to entertain and educate girls about their limitless opportunities... |
TM
Regarding her book,
Touching History:
"It has been the most
humbling experience of
my life to have been
entrusted with the
stories of so many. As
an airline pilot, I have
been aware of and
appreciated those who
work to make aviation
safe, but I have come
away from this project
with a deep admiration
for the courage and
bravery of so many
who were willing to put
their careers - and even
their lives - on the line
to keep September
11th from being an
even greater tragedy,
and those who work
24/7 to keep us safe."
Touching History:
"It has been the most
humbling experience of
my life to have been
entrusted with the
stories of so many. As
an airline pilot, I have
been aware of and
appreciated those who
work to make aviation
safe, but I have come
away from this project
with a deep admiration
for the courage and
bravery of so many
who were willing to put
their careers - and even
their lives - on the line
to keep September
11th from being an
even greater tragedy,
and those who work
24/7 to keep us safe."
| "Follow your heart, your dreams and your passions to find your path. No fear! You can do anything!" |