When Dreams Take Flight

When Katie Poertner was in middle school, she was invited to participate in a Women in Aviation event at nearby Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. The day left such a strong impression on her that she knew she wanted to attend Embry Riddle one day.

Her hometown of DeLand, Florida hosted its annual Sport Aviation Showcase when Katie was 14. Her family learned that Embry Riddle instructor, Virginie Rollin, would be at the event to present a forum called “Aviation Education - Getting Kids Involved in Aviation”. While her parents wanted to support Katie’s dreams, their family had no experience with aviation, so this seemed like a perfect place to start.

Shortly after, Katie started to take discovery flights through the 99’s and The Young Eagles program. As she and her parents attended these events, they had the opportunity to speak with many experienced pilots and volunteers who advised them that the best way for Katie to become a pilot was to begin with gliders. The first time Katie took off in a glider, she was hooked. “It was just so cool to be up in the air, hearing the wind and seeing birds flying beside me and below me,” said Katie. “We were all trying to catch the same thermals.”

Katie was a natural at gliding and approached it with a balance of confidence and caution. She loved the thrill of performing stalls while always being attentive to her environment and eagerly following her teacher’s instructions. She attended her lessons for several weeks until her glider school announced that they would be closing. After searching around, she was put in touch with a local glider club, Eagle Sport Aviation. There, she received lessons from several talented glider pilots, and it seemed like she would have her student solo certificate in no time.

It was then that the pandemic hit, and lessons were put on hiatus for over a year. The uncertainty that came with Covid took its toll on the club, which eventually announced its temporary ending in the spring of 2021. Katie used this time to continue practicing with a glider simulator program and concentrated on her studies. When summer arrived, she would travel to Clermont, Florida to begin taking lessons again through Seminole-Lake Gliderport.

Although Katie had a long break in her training, she was back up to speed in no time and is preparing to begin her solo flights in the coming weeks. Once she acquires her glider pilot rating, she plans to move forward with learning to pilot powered planes.

“One of my biggest challenges so far is that each time I get a new instructor, they want to start from the very beginning. They all have different ways of teaching,” she explains. “They each have slightly different expectations from you, but I can also see how this helps me to become a better pilot. I keep picking up more tips and techniques every time I learn from someone new.”

Watching Katie learn to fly has been a rewarding endeavor, well worth any sacrifice for her parents. “I just want my kids to grow up knowing that there is no dream too big for them to accomplish when they work hard and set their minds to it,” says her mom, Cassandra.

Her father, Josh, is incredibly proud to have a daughter who is interested in a traditionally male-dominated industry. “It’s important to me that our children find careers that they truly enjoy, not just something that makes money. So, to watch her find a real interest at an early age means a lot to me.”

At 16, Katie is now dual-enrolled at DeLand High and Daytona State College, and she is on track to earn her AA degree when she graduates high school. Despite many roadblocks along the way, she continues to work towards her dream of attending Embry Riddle and finding a career in the aviation industry as a pilot.