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So, my aviation journey begins at the tender age of 16. I had just finished high school in the UK, and was contemplating what I wanted to do with my life. Many options crossed my mind, but eventually I decided I wanted to be a helicopter pilot. I have no idea where this came from, having no friends or family in aviation, but my mind was set. There was only one problem. Money. Being a 16 year old, my bank balance was approximately £17, and my parents certainly couldn’t afford the £100,000 I needed to train as a chopper pilot in the UK. As such, I looked around for other options.
Firstly, I contacted the Royal Air Force. I passed the initial interviews and went for my medical. Being 6”5’, I was not eligible for a pilot, as they screen everyone for fast jets, and I was told if I ejected, I’d lose my kneecaps. So, the search then brought me to the Army. The British Army isn’t that large, but it has a very good aviation regiment, called the Army Air Corps, who operate a selection of helicopters. I applied, passed the barrage of mental and physical testing, and was offered a scholarship to go to university. I grabbed the opportunity with both hands.
Having a love for all sports (particularly volleyball), I attended the UK’s number one sports university - Loughborough University, and studied Physics. During my time at university, I worked my way through the volleyball ranks, until I played in the highest division in the UK, and represented UK universities in Europe. Everything was going exactly to plan until my final year. As part of my course, I picked an elective which involved playing rugby, as it was a nice break from the intense physics. One day, 3 months before my final exams, I was playing rugby, and had a bad knee injury, completely rupturing my ACL, and severely damaging the cartilage and tendons in my left knee. I had surgery soon afterwards, but was medically discharged from the Army before I’d even joined!I had to replan my life. Quickly. I tried to think of any other way I could go into aviation, but nothing emerged. I graduated from university and had to find a job. I applied to a random selection of positions, and the best of the bunch ended up being in business analysis. So then started 2 years stuck in front of a computer screen, yearning to be in the air...Little did Ben know at the time that he'd soon be flying this Etihad A320 below:
Click below to read Ben's full article and see what he flies today with Etihad. (ignore this if you're already on the main article)
... At this point in my life, my father started getting very ill, and was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He unfortunately passed away later that year. This event made me realize I didn’t want to spend my life typing away on excel, so against all advise, used my inheritance money to start my flying training.I researched pretty much every flying school I could find to work out what was best for my circumstances. I didn’t have enough cash to enroll in the ab-initio UK flying schools, so I went down the modular route. The plan was to start my training in South Africa. The weather would be nice, the aircraft are cheaper to hire, and the airspace is less congested, for easier initial flying. I then planned to return to the UK to complete my CPL/IR, and look for a job.
Thanks so much Ben for writing in and sharing your story. You're the first A320 pilot to have written in, as well as being the first paralympian, that's pretty incredible!
It's great to hear that you're almost 100% certified to fly as an F/O for Etihad. I can't wait to read more about some of the cool destinations that you're getting to fly into.Thanks again for writing in and participating in the Share Your Story section of the blog,
Swayne Martin Martins Aviation / From Private to Professional PilotTwitter: @MartinsAviationYoutube: MartinsAviation1
