About Me
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking……
My name is Chloe. I’m 17 years old, and I’m a big sister, Girl Guide and Private Pilot.
Since a very early age, I’ve been in love with the idea of flight. My grandfather was an Air Force Navigator during the Vietnam War, and I grew up hearing about his experiences.
Throughout my childhood, I idolised historic female aviators, such as Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic, and Lydia Litvyak, the world’s highest scoring female fighter pilot.
When I was 15, I had my first opportunity to explore flying myself when I attended an aviation day hosted by the Girl Guides at Bankstown Airport, and I took a trial lesson. From the moment the plane left the ground, I was completely hooked!
I’ve been flying regularly ever since, gaining my Recreational Pilot’s Licence in May 2022 and my Private Pilot’s Licence in February 2023. I’ve also been lucky to meet some incredible people along the way, including a small yet strong group of female pilots who I have the honour of calling my friends.
Despite this, parts of aviation are somewhat tainted by outdated beliefs about the abilities and potential of female pilots. I’ve personally encountered barriers in preparation for this flight; including those who doubt my capacity to complete the journey on the grounds of my gender.
Only 5% of Australia’s pilots are women, and several cultural and historical factors have contributed to this statistic. As a proud advocate for women’s empowerment, I truly believe that this number has the potential to increase in the coming decades, by inspiring girls to take opportunities they didn’t even know existed.
I’m so fortunate to have been supported and motivated by the incredible women on my team, and I also often look upon the stories of accomplished aviatrices of history and draw inspiration from their success.
Through undertaking this journey, I hope to show young people, especially young women who are in the same position I was in three years ago, that every opportunity and avenue is possible to them in whatever field they chose.
