What is the first thing that people always ask me?

I bet you can guess... So, do you fly?

Now I can finally say yes!

I was named Amelia Earhart by my parents Debbie and Glen for lots of reasons, some obvious and some a bit more subtle. The biggest reason that was given such a historically memorable name was because my parents wanted me to have a mark that instilled inspiration, courage and curiosity from others. Growing up, I thought that my parents had played a horrible joke on me- did they want me to be the laughing stock of my entire school? Of course not. This was a name that I would have to grow into and develop however I chose. I am not directly related to Amelia, but rather have common ancestry from back in the seventeen hundreds. Now that I am in my twenties, I can see that this name is the greatest gift that I could have ever been given by my parents.

My parents never encouraged me to fly. That sounds sad, but it really is not. It was quite possibly the best thing that they could have done for me in terms of allowing me to discover my own talents and passions. They didn't force an interest in aviation on me and I feel that it may be the reason that I am so drawn to it now. I was allowed to discover this interest on my own, rather than feel that just because I was named after the most famous aviatrix of all time that I had to fly. Now that I have chosen on my own to pursue flight training, my parents and entire family support me completely.

I am very lucky that both my hobbies and my job include time in the sky. I am the airborne reporter for 850 KOA and fill in on 9 News here in Denver. We fly in a Eurocopter A Star B3- the same model helicopter that landed on Everest! I love my job because of the fact that I get to help people who are stuck on the roads when they would rather be home with their families or doing something that they enjoy. I try and keep in mind when reporting the traffic that if I give one person an easy way to get around a big problem on the roads that I have done something good for someone on a personal level. Outside of work, I am very busy with my photography, hiking in the Boulder foothills and playing with my dog, Choppy.

Thank you for taking the time to read a little bit about me. Through this flight training blog, I hope to spark curiosity about flight, talk about my experience in the Cirrus SR-22 and discuss questions that all student pilots have while embarking on this exciting journey that is flying. Feel free to contact me at ameliaearhart@comcast.net with suggestions, questions, and comments. I want to hear about your flight time as well!