Claudia joins the Flying Instructor Team

Where did your interest in aviation come from?

As nobody in my immediate family is involved in aviation it had never occurred to me that I could fly. I wasn't enamoured with any of my options after high school and my parents had placed me in a University in Barcelona to study business, which I attended briefly before deciding to return to Hong Kong to do charity work.

I was fortunate enough to stumble into aviation through a close friend of mine. He had been turned down as both a police officer and a firefighter and in his eternal quest for a satisfying career, he had come up with a great idea. He rang to say he was leaving to go and complete a commercial pilot licence and I decided to join him. A month later I found myself in a Grob 115 doing a trial lesson in the South of Australia explaining to my instructor that I had fear of flying! I spent a gap year there before deciding I loved it so much I would commit to flying. I found a school in Spain that offered an integrated ATPL course and six weeks later I had passed selection and was beginning the training course. 

Why do you love flying?

As the course in Spain progressed it became more challenging and I genuinely worried at times that I would have to forget about aviation and find something else. The ground exams were extremely difficult, however I worked hard and received great support from my colleagues and in the end passed with a 90% average.

Once the ground exams were complete I could focus entirely on my flying. As I progressed through the course I became more and more enamoured with what I was doing and by the time I reached the completion of my Instrument Rating

I did the Instrument Rating course in a Seneca III. I remember the first flight I did in actual instrument conditions. I was flying from Jerez into Seville and I remember how busy that day was, liaising with ATC, navigating on "steam" instruments whilst flying the aircraft safely. At one point I began to descend and I remember the moment that I came out of the cloud and the runway at Seville was right in front of me. It was the most intense feeling of satisfaction that I have ever experienced in my life. 

Flying is about a lot of things for me. It is about the moment that I rotate the aircraft and leave all of the banalities of life on the ground as I climb away from them. I am so high above everything and it all looks so beautiful below me. It is about a seemingly unlimited sense of freedom, being able to go to the Isle of Wight for a cup of tea all in the space of an hour, or taking my grandparents from Barcelona for a day trip around the Pyrenees to stop for lunch in a beautiful valley whilst people do parachute jumps around us. It is about community and the people with whom you can share your passion and your knowledge. It is about a love of the different types of aircraft that you can see and fly, developing a taste for their differences, and appreciating their beauty. Most of all for me it is about achievement and the drive to be better at what you do and to keep learning.

Aviation has lit a fire in me to keep going, learn more, challenge myself by going to new places and flying different types of aircraft. I want to get better at what I do, know more about everything I possibly can. I have never been so hungry for anything in my life.

How do you fit flying into your life?

When I completed my flying training the job market was pretty dire. I moved to the UK and as my pilot licence didn't serve me for anything other than being a pilot, I acquired a job at my local ASDA restocking the produce department. Those were dark times.

Some months later I obtained a job as Cabin Crew for a large European carrier and made the jump into the back of the 319/320. However, I missed flying terribly and decided that I would complete my Flying Instructor rating. I visited a couple airfields and at the last minute met a pilot named Paddy who was adamant that I should have a look at Goodwood Flying School and speak to Graham Turner, the CFI. I visited Goodwood and it was love at first sight. All of its peculiarities work in perfect harmony and it is a place where everybody is always happy. I love that one day I'll be waiting to take off after a Spitfire whilst a beautiful old car races past me. I love the mix of aircraft that come in and out and the people who visit. I love how close it is to the coast and most of all I love that everybody here is so passionate about flying. I love the sense of community and shared purpose. 

I did the Instructor Rating on my days off and for about 4 months if I wasn't at work I was at Goodwood doing the course and I would have days off only when the weather was bad. Was it difficult to lead my life that way? Did I resent it at any moment? No! It was exactly where I wanted to be. I enjoyed every second that I was in the air and Graham was an absolutely fabulous instructor.

Over the last year Goodwood has become my happy place and when I was offered the job as an instructor after the course I was filled with joy and gratitude. I now work at Goodwood when my airline gives me days off and I book all my leave in the summer so that I can make the most of the good weather. 

I've always considered myself a little wimpy. I don't get on rollercoasters and I'm not one for strong emotions however whilst doing the Instructor course at Goodwood I had to complete a sortie in which I learnt spin entries and recoveries in one of the Ultimate High Fireflys. It filled me with a sense of dread but I couldn't get out of it. By the end of the flight I realised that I had never felt so alive. I subsequently completed an aerobatic rating with Ultimate High, changing every perspective I have ever had about myself and my abilities. 

Do you have a flying dream/ambition?

At the moment I am I'm trying to find my first job in a multi-crew aircraft. My time as a flying instructor has given me a strong hope that whatever I end up flying can eventually take me into a training position.

For now, I'm just trying to get my first flying job outside of General Aviation and I hope that even when I fly something bigger I will still have time to fly little single engine pistons. I would like to continue to do flying instruction and aerobatics to continually learn and improve my skill set. 

Are there any flying role models that have particularly inspired you?

Due to my perhaps unorthodox initiation into aviation I am not familiar with any of aviation's early pioneers, nor am I familiar with any of today's famous pilots. Fortunately for me, aviation is for everyone and while I would love to know more, you don't really need to know any of that to fly.

I have had the privilege of flying with some exceptional pilots. I have met people who have struggled to complete and pay for their own licences, people who have lived the most incredible experiences through their flying careers and people who have such broad skill sets and are brilliant at many things, yet so humble. I won't mention any names as I don't feel it's right, but I am in awe of the people I have met and so deeply grateful as they have helped me to become who I am today.