10 - Wendi Sparks - Females In Flight: Women in Aviation
Thanks for tuning into another episode of the Mentors and Moguls podcast with your host, Heather Stone! Here with us today is Wendi Sparks. Wendi is an accomplished pilot who is sitting down to talk about what helped shape her into the incredible woman she is today.
As a child, Wendi was lucky enough to be taken up in an airplane. Even at that young age, she knew this is where she belonged. She had several women in her life that she was able to look up to as role models. As she grew up, she found more and more women who impacted her by introducing her to what was possible. A mentor of hers sat Wendi on her lap and showed her what all the different controls do. From then on, she had found her calling.
In a traditionally male-dominated field (only 4.4% of pilots are women), Wendi believes that more and more women are starting to fly. Though it seems like the number of women hasn’t increased, every new class of pilots brings in more capable women pilots.
Wendi discusses what sort of skill set and what qualities pilots need to be successful. She says if you get a group of pilots together you’ll find they are very methodical and goal-oriented. You’ll find that they make lists and make sure things are done. They’re trained to know how to remain calm in an emergency situation. While many things can be taught, there is an innate drive that gets pilots through the academy. Being a pilot is a job where you are constantly learning!
Wendi shares her experience working with Gulf Stream and how it helped form her and her daughter in similar ways. She discusses what she did, how she did it, and the impact it had on her and her family.
Among other topics, Wendi and Heather dig into the implications of COVID-19 while working in the commercial flight industry and being a mother.
What You’ll Learn
On today’s episode, Wendi gives us a window into the aviation industry. She discusses the in’s and out’s of being a woman pilot in a male-domniated industry, the skills she’s aquired in becoming a pilot, the implications of COVID-19, and more!
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