Chicks Who Fly

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In today’s 14th episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Sammi McQ. Sammi is a Private Pilot with an Instrument Rating, who started flying while she was in high school, shortly after her dad accidentally purchased an airplane. Sammi is currently working on her Commercial Certificate.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 13th episode of the Chicks Who Fly Podcast, I have a chat with pilot, hair stylist, salon owner and host of the Cockpits and Cocktails podcast,  Allyssa VanMeter, a.k.a. Fly Allyssa.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In today’s episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Natalie Kelley. commercial pilot, podcaster, business owner, mother and owner of Fly Girl LLC .  Natalie and I get to talk about airshows, seaplanes, aerobatics, the impact that being clear on your priorities has on the choices you make, the importance of being true to yourself and not caring too much about other people’s opinions about what you are doing, the focus that it took for her to complete her flight training and her company’s mission to encourage and inspire women and young girls to open their hearts and minds to their potential.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 11th episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with fellow Los Angeles 99s member, Civil Air Patrol member and Private Pilot with a complex rating, Kate Scott. We get to discuss how a breakup propelled her into taking on flight training,  the ups and downs of flight training, dealing with impostor syndrome, how her solo cross-country flight helped her confidence as a pilot, flying for Civil Air Patrol, juggling work and flight training, joining a flying club, the importance of talking through the maneuvers and procedures you are performing during lessons and check rides, preparing for FAA written exams, the challenges of radio communications,  and standing for the diversification and expansion of the aviation community.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 10th episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Emmy Award-winning journalist, KTLA reporter and private pilot, Christina Pascucci. We talk about how she learned to fly in order to overcome her paralyzing fear of flying in small planes,  We talk about how she learned to fly in Palm Springs and documented her flight training and her first solo for a TV show. We talk about the news story Christina got to do where she was able to grant the wish of a 99-year-old WASP who wanted to fly once more. We talk about dealing with self-doubt, the time that Christina lost comms in her aircraft during a flight, and about the power that comes with taking on challenges in the service of something bigger than just yourself, how Christina is inspired by the idea of empowering  women to face their fears and challenges head on, flying to OshKosh, how aviation can serve the community and the confidence that comes with flight training and getting your pilot certificate among other things.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In today’s episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Tamara Griffith. Tamara’s certificates and ratings include her Multi-engine ATP, Commercial single-engine for both land and seaplane, CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI, IGI and an A&P and she has her  Inspection Authorization.

Tamara is the daughter of Mary Latimer and her husband, Lawrence who founded and run GIFT (Girls In Flight Training ) Academy and whose goal is to identify and to address the various issues that may be causing women to abandon flight training, and to assist them earning their pilot certificates. Tamara  has been a freight pilot, a corporate pilot and a mechanic, chief inspector, among other things and serves as one of the head flight instructors for GIFT Academy which was presented with an AOPA Honor Roll award for excellence in training in 2013.

In this episode, Tamara and I get to talk about the support, community and camaraderie that is part of the GIFT Academy flight training experience, flying in different countries such as Dubai, Turkey, Italy and Mexico and the attitudes towards women pilots in each culture, flying for different charity and relief organizations, flying with her dog and how he reacted when she had an emergency, flying with her family and what it was like when having an emergency during a flight with them and how flight training can help with other jobs and life situations.

This was a really enjoyable conversation full of great insight, experience and advice for anyone interested in, or in the process of flight training.

You can reach Tamara by email at [email protected].

You can also visit the GIFT Academy website and you can find her on Facebook and Instagram.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 8th episode of Chicks Who Fly we tried something different.  I had arranged to interview Erin Olivier, and on the day our call was scheduled, she happened to be spending time with another female pilot friend so, in this episode, I get to have a conversation with TWO pilots. Private Pilot Erin Olivier, who was still working on her instrument rating at the time we recorded the episode but she has since passed her instrument rating check ride! Congratulations Erin!! Erin also has her AGI and A&P (stands for Airframe and Powerplant and is the certification required for an aircraft mechanic) as well as being an instrument-rated Private Pilot. The second pilot in today’s conversation is Jenna Samuelian who is a Private Pilot is working on a Bachelor’s Degree in Aviation Management.

In this fun and all-over-the-place conversation, we get to talk about the ups and downs of flight training, options and approaches one can take in flight training and on the aviation career path. We talk about aviation business, favorite aviation shows and career paths, flying for animal rescue missions, why we prefer women flight instructors, apps that can help student pilots study, fun flights with loved ones, flying competitions, the benefits of getting a job at a local airport, the confidence that comes from learning to fly an airplane and so much more!

Follow and reach out to Erin on IG

Photos courtesy of Erin Olivier

Theme music by Diego Jinkus.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 7th episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Commercial Multi-engine Pilot, Kristyn Blocher. Kristyn also has a tailwheel endorsement, and an SIC rating in the Citation 500 and she is currently working on reinstating her CFI rating.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 6th episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Los Angeles-based artist and aviatrix, Farida Amar. Farida is a commercial helicopter pilot with an IFR rating and she is working on her commercial fixed-wing add-on. In this episode we get to talk about what it’s like growing up with a pilot mom. We also discuss the pros and cons of helicopters vs airplanes, what we like to look for in a good CFI/student pilot relationship, the financial and logistical challenges Farida faces in completing her training and the benefits of buying a plane to complete flight training.

Producing this podcast is a labor of love, but it requires significant effort. With your support, I can make it even better for you. If the Chicks Who Fly Podcast has made a difference for you and brought you joy, please consider supporting our work: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/inaia/support

In this 5th episode of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Cheryl Pitzer. Cheryl is a Captain for FedEx and has been with the company for 24 years. Cheryl’s ratings include: ATP, Multi Engine, MD11, CE500, CE525, SA227 Commercial Single engine land, helicopter and seaplane CFII,  MEI and Aircraft dispatcher.