In this 6th episode of season 2 of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with private pilot, working on her instrument rating, Robin Hollinger. After working 5 or 6 different jobs, Robin pivoted and decided to pursue a career in aviation. The idea to start flight training was sparked by her younger brother wanting to start flight training. Robin went on to haver her discovery flight at 30 after a career counselor helped her get clear on what she wanted for herself. The counselor also helped set Robin up to pursue her flying goals.

Robin started flying in Wisconsin. Eventually, she asked her employer if they would let her work remotely so she could do her flight training. Her employer said yes and Robin moved to Florida where after completing her private pilot certificate. Florida is where Robin is currently working on her instrument rating.

In this episode, we get to chat about the challenges of flying in the extreme cold weather such as having to wait for the temperature to WARM UP to -10 F to be able to start the plane. Robin shares about the challenges of fine tuning maneuvers to be within ACS standards.

We also talk about how Robin soloed in winter in Wisconsin. And how she gained confidence after first solo.

Robin talks about how she found herself super challenged by radio communications. Shares some of the funny mistakes she’s made on radio calls. We talk about how practicing emergency checklists gave her confidence and about what her check ride was like , the challenges of instrument training, the discouraging moments she had in flight training and how she moved past them.

This and more in this episode of Chicks Who Fly.

Growing up, Lindsay was considering becoming a military pilot until she found out that her peanut allergy was a medical disqualifying factor.

So she applied for and received a scholarship to get her private in one summer and then went off to train at Embry Riddle, where she finished all her training in an impressive 2 1/2 years by staying on campus every summer and holiday season to work on her flight training. Lindsay shares about the things she did to maximize her flight training and save money while quickly moving towards her goal. We also get to talk about how Lindsay had to overcome a terrible propensity towards airsickness, as she got sick on her discovery flight and continued to struggle with that during her flight training.

Lindsay graduated from Embry Riddle right when COVID was hitting and her school put a pause on hiring instructors. Not only did Lindsay manage to find a jb as a flight instructor, but by the time Lindsay was close to getting her hours, she landed a job with a part 135 charter airline and is now a first officer working on her captain upgrade.

In this fourth episode of season two of Chicks Who Fly, I get to have a conversation with Part 135 Corporate pilot flying a PC-12 in the Caribbean, who was born and raised in Rio, Brazil, Debbie Nascimento.

Debbie is a first generation aviator who became a flight attendant at 20. While working in the airline, she used to go into the cockpit and ask the pilots questions about what they were doing, how to fly the airplane and how to go about getting her certificates and ratings. She decided to take out a loan so that she could do her training quickly.

Debbie did her entire training part 61 in the insanely busy NYC airspace, while working full time as a flight attendant and she ended up getting ALL her certificates and ratings in an astonishing one year and three month period -private, instrument, commercial, commercial multi-engine, w seaplane, CFI, CFII, AGI, tail wheel endorsement and then went on to get her high performance, high altitude. Debbie is also one of the only 200-300 pilots in the world qualified to fly into St Barths.

During her training, one of the things she struggled with, was a fear of stalls and feeling uncomfortable with steep turns but she found the instrument, her easiest and most fun rating, which is what most people call their most difficult and boring. We talk about the mental shift she made, that had her see her instrument rating from that perspective.

At the time of this interview, Debbie was getting ready to go to her first assigned base in San Juan, Puerto Rico.