Learning to fly - Katy Thompson

Katy Thompson (Lee), Class of 2007, took a more unusual career path on leaving St Helen’s. We asked her about her experiences as a commercial pilot and her role with a charity promoting diversity in the sector, specifically encouraging and mentoring women, who account for less than 1 in 20 UK pilots.

What attracted you to aviation, and how did you get into the field?

I first got into flying when I was 15; I was gifted a trial lesson in a PA28 by my mum as my dad, who had died when I was nine, had been an airline pilot. Initially, there was a huge amount to take in, and I was pretty overwhelmed with the challenge of learning a new skill that required a lot of self-motivation, courage, and determination. It was a world away from anything I’d ever done before. During my lessons, my flight instructor asked if I’d considered aviation as a career. Remarkably, despite my family background, I hadn’t but I looked into it and decided it was the path I wanted to take. I understood the challenges of unsociable hours, shift patterns, and night flights from seeing my parents work in the industry, so it wasn’t too much of a shock to the system. At the age of 18, while my classmates headed off to their various universities, I went to Kidlington airport to start a full-time course to learn to become an airline pilot.

What is your current role and what does a typical day look like?

After ten years in the industry, I now fly the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. It’s a wide-body aircraft so we tend to fly to long haul destinations - I see a lot of Barbados, Thailand and Mexico. No two days are ever the same, but a typical trip would look something like this:

06:00 - get up and get ready for work

08:15 - arrive at work, meet my crew (most of whom I would never have met before) and brief on the day ahead - the weather, any aircraft defects, our routing and any challenges that may bring, and our fuel decision

09:15 - take off and fly to destination - we’re very busy in the first and last hour but things get a little quieter in the cruise, so we can get to know the rest of the crew a little better, catch up on company reading or have a coffee

19:00 - dependent on where we’re flying - flights are often around 10 hours but can be more - we land, collect our bags and catch the crew transport to our hotel. From there, it’s a quick shower and change before heading down to the bar for a drink and a bite to eat. Invariably, it’ll be an early night!

Our return flight, especially if we are going westbound, e.g. to the Caribbean, will be an overnight flight. For instance, we often leave Barbados, in the late afternoon and land home around 06:00, before driving back to collapse into bed for a few hours and try to reset the body clock. It’s amazing how disruptive being away for only 48 hours can be!

How did the charity 'Aviation in Reach’ come about? Can you tell us what support it offers?

In 2022, I was trying to ascertain why aviation had barely changed in terms of its proportional diversity - around 3% of airline pilots were female in the 1970s yet, half a century later, the UK was barely above 5% female. Many airlines had attempted performative schemes, such as sponsoring one woman a year through her training which, while great for that individual, made a limited impact upon the wider industry. I noted that one thing which hadn’t really been attempted was mentoring, and so I vowed to set up a 100% free mentoring charity for women and individuals from non-white backgrounds aged 18+ who aspired to be Pilots, Air Traffic Controllers and Aeronautical Engineers. Recognising that the military has a similar issue to civil aviation, we support those aspiring to both military and civilian careers. And thus, Aviation in Reach was born!

I was exceptionally lucky to be able to link in with a great group of people, and our founder trustee team came together to shape what the charity does, including an inspiring RAF Officer who is now the Chief of the Defense Staff, Sir Rich Knighton. Every one of our team believes passionately that the aviation industry will be stronger for becoming more diverse but that, as the old adage goes, “you cannot be what you cannot see” and having role models and mentors who understand the challenges of joining an industry where you feel “other” is absolutely invaluable. We’ve had some great successes in the last 4 years, with our mentees now working for various airlines, the RAF and NATS, and the charity continues to grow. Alongside free mentoring, we offer visits to various aerospace locations, interview and group assessment workshops and networking.

What advice would you give anyone interested in finding out more about careers in aviation?

Many career advisors struggle to provide guidance regarding careers in aviation, but the information is out there. For anyone who’s nearly 18, or above, and who’s considering an aviation future, I’d absolutely suggest getting in touch with us at www.aviationinreach.org.uk. For those a little younger, the RAF Air Cadets is a great place to start, and the Air League offer scholarships to aspiring aviation professionals. If you’re considering the military, the RAF careers team are also always happy to help.