
March 4, 2018 will be 5 Years since I started my career in aviation. It’s amazing to me how much has changed and what I have learned during that time.
What sticks out to me the most is how fast it all goes. One moment I’m a senior in college googling flight schools and trying to figure out how I’m going to make my dream come true, and the next moment I’m working for SkyWest Airlines as a first officer flying an ERJ-175.
Being the first pilot in my family has made my aviation career path one I had to discover on my own. Growing up in a small town in Southern California with no airports for miles made it difficult to pursue my passion of flying. After much research and effort, I discovered ATP’s flight school.
ATP offered me the fast-paced accelerated program I had been looking for. Having already received my bachelor’s degree in communications, I was looking for a flight school that would help me to obtain all my certificates needed to become a professional pilot. So, on March 4, 2013, I started my flight training in San Diego, California.
After seven months of training and flight instructing in Scottsdale, Arizona, I was hired at SkyWest Airlines flying the ERJ-175. Flying at SkyWest is one of the most fulfilling things I have done with my life. From helping people travel to seeing new places myself, I have found that being an airline pilot is more than I ever could have hoped for.
After a year at SkyWest, I was given the opportunity to join their recruiting team. I now get to travel the country sharing my story and love of aviation, as well as helping people reach their goal of becoming an airline pilot. It’s amazing to me how small of a community the aviation world is. This community offers an immense amount of support and guidance. Helping people find their career path in aviation is one of my favorite parts of being a recruiter. It’s also allowed me to give back to ATP by mentoring the next generation of pilots that are starting their career in the same place I was not long ago. To use a rather obvious pun, these past 5 years have flown by and from where I’m sitting, you can’t get a better view to watch life unfold.
