Where It All Began
People often ask me how I became a pilot.
The answer began long before I ever sat in the pilot's seat.
One of my earliest memories is from when I was about two years old. I was in the back seat of the Kyneton Aero Club Cessna 172 with Mum, and Dad was at the controls. Terrified, I was looking for the exit!
As I grew older, Dad would hire the Kyneton Aero Club’s Cessna 172 and take my older sister and me flying. I don't remember the registration of the aircraft from those earliest flights, but I can still remember the excitement of being in the air.
Dad also liked to make things... interesting.
He'd pull the power back and announce we'd had an engine failure, or demonstrate stall recoveries that had me convinced we were heading straight for the ground. I loved flying, but I wasn't so keen on the surprises!
When I was seven, everything changed.
Our family flew to Canberra on a commercial airliner, and for the first time I experienced flying that felt calm, smooth and purposeful. Somewhere during that trip I realised I didn't just enjoy aeroplanes—I wanted to fly them.
Years later, I returned to Kyneton Aero Club to learn to fly.
Dad had flown the club’s 1976 Cessna 172, VH-ABW, many times over the years. When the time came for my first solo, it was that very same aeroplane that I climbed into.
It's a memory I'll always treasure. Knowing that Dad had flown VH-ABW years before made that first solo feel like more than just another training flight—it felt like I was continuing a family story.
That flight marked the beginning of a journey that has now grown to more than 3,200 hours in the air, a career as a Flight Instructor, and the privilege of introducing countless people to the joy of flying.
Today, I have the honour of sharing another remarkable aircraft with my passengers—a beautifully restored de Havilland Tiger Moth.
Every time someone climbs out of the front cockpit wearing a huge smile, I'm reminded how powerful a single flight can be. You never know where that first taste of aviation might lead.
Purchase a gift voucher!
Enquire Now!