Ever since I went for a ride in my friends Dad’s Zenith Skyjeep I have had a passion for flying. I was thrown back by the whole atmosphere of the flight. Soon after this I decided to make sure it wasn’t a one off. I went for a trial flight with Quantum Aviation in Whangarei. This was undoubtedly enough, I was hooked.
The start of this year presented itself with two options. I had to decide between having a gap year or getting stuck into my studies. As I knew I wanted to follow the aviation career pathway and I know the effort and commitment which must be applied in order to succeed I chose to save up all I could and have a gap year down here in Dunedin. My plan was to have a year off then reside back to Northland and start my dream of becoming a pilot with Quantum Aviation in Whangarei. These plans soon changed after I discovered Mainland Aviation Dunedin. After further researching the College I decided this was where I wanted to study. Diploma in Aviation Science was the Qualification I was going to pursue.
Driving has always been a big passion of mine but I have always been held back by the regulations of the road and the excessive cost of track racing. I love the sense of being in control of modern technology and when I took over the plane for the first time on my test flight I had a grin from ear to ear. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before and from this point on I knew this was the career for me. After this event driving just wasn’t the same, it just didn’t compare to what I had experienced that day in the Cessna 152. After weighing up the different options for me to access my goal of becoming a pilot I decided to go for the commercial process. The armed forces just didn’t seem right for me; although the costs were a lot lower I just couldn’t justify the return of service. I would not want to be tied down for such a long period of time. I see myself as much more of a