Taking Flight: The Aviation Community's Unique Warmth and Motivation

Most of the pilots I’ve seen look like they could be my father. I expected to be walking into an old boys club when I came to flight school to start my student pilot license training. Instead of feeling like an outsider, I immediately felt welcomed and encouraged. I expected that meant that my flight school just had a great culture, so I felt fortunate. But as I started to post on LinkedIn, and meet other pilots in person, I have found that it is not specific to my school; it is not regional. The pilot community is probably the most welcoming, collaborative, joy-sharing community I’ve ever interacted with.

This is a group of people who think ahead and think about how to look out for the next person. They see a flat tire - they fix it entirely or help it get fixed. They look out for the success and ease of the next pilot. It is a highly considerate community.

You can see some of my posts about my student pilot journey at the bottom of this article, and the comments that other pilots have shared. But what you don’t see are the direct messages of pilots reaching out to connect, offering advice and sharing their happiest moments in the sky.?

When I had my first solo flight, which is a highly significant milestone for pilots, there were pilots appearing almost out of nowhere to congratulate me and to share about their first solo flight (in many cases it was a month ago, but for many it was years or decades ago). When I began my flight lessons I had a former work colleague call me to spend an hour on the phone talking through all the details of how to get the most out of my flight lessons and ground school, and then follow up regularly

What can I learn from this community? I think that creating a community focused on welcoming people in, offering warmth and support, cheering people on in their success - is worth a lot. What other spaces can I nurture to increase the celebration, support, and camaraderie?

Piloty Posts:

• My First Solo Flight
• Just a fun post about flight training, but check out the kind and encouraging comments!