LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A local pilot is working to change the face of aviation by mentoring the next generation of female pilots and she says the mission is personal.
Women have been flying for more than a century, but still make up only roughly 7-8% of all pilots in the United States.
For Judi Fisher, that statistic is something she is determined to change.
WATCH | I show you how she's helping young women see a future in flight:
"For whatever reason, women are extremely underrepresented in the aviation industry," Fisher said. "Being a woman in aviation has been isolating at times, most of my peers are men, and everyone who taught me were all men. I thought I had a lack of shared experience with them."
Fisher's own path to the cockpit began early and close to home.
"I personally love being a pilot, it's a great career," Fisher said. "I started flying right out of high school. I got inspired to do it because my grandfather used to fly general aviation."
Now, she is channeling that passion into instructing at All In Aviation, where she says the work brings her joy.
"It's so much fun," Fisher said.
But beyond the fun, Fisher says there is something uniquely powerful about a woman being present in the cockpit as a mentor.
"It's different having that nurturing bond of a woman in the cockpit, and it's fun to have that big sister, motherly instincts with you," Fisher said.
Fisher took me inside a flight simulator to show how she teaches, walking me through the basics of landing and takeoff.
Whether the cockpit holds a cabin full of passengers or a reporter trying to keep the nose level, her mission stays the same.
"That's what we're trying to change it we want to have a stronger base of women in aviation so that we can inspire everyone to do it, no matter what their gender is," Fisher said.
As more women like Fisher continue to share their knowledge, the hope is that more girls will see the cockpit as a place where they belong.
