smart | schools Up, up and away Familiarization flights help acquaint people with airplanes, its functions, and life in the cockpit


Owner/instructor Dan Reeves of Winnipeg Aviation. By Brenlee Coates


“O


kay, Brenlee, you’re going to land this airplane,” says Dan Reeves, flight instructor and owner of Winnipeg Aviation.


These are words I never thought I’d hear – especially


without some monumental crises happening around me and about 72 people who must’ve refused before me. A surprising yet familiar calm sets in, and I choose to feign


confidence instead of having a meltdown – maybe this is where the phrase “fight or flight” really comes from. I didn’t fight it – I just flew. Obviously, there must’ve been some trust built up in me


before this moment, or at least my instructor was faking some too. But the experience of going on a familiarization flight with Winnipeg Aviation really was settling, in general. Getting acquainted


We spend a healthy hour going over parts of the plane –


checking the wings, the gas level, the rudder (kind of the tail of the airplane) – and he explains using anecdotes and simple terms how many of these functions work. When he explains that pull is “up” and push is “down,”


I find myself going over the logic behind it over and over, practicing and committing it to memory. If I remember one thing, this has to be it. Once we’re assured of the plane’s good condition, and


record our “balance” (inch-pounds carried in the aircraft), we spend another generous 20 minutes getting acquainted with the controls and going through the flight checklist that any pilot would go through before taking off. By the time we start out on the runway, I am already tan-


gled up over the two pedals for driving. Tey’re as easy as common sense suggests – if you want to go right, push right. Left, push left. Someone who’s even driven a go-cart should be able to get this. At one point, I overcompensate and nearly run off the


runway – luckily, Dan has the same rudder pedals for steer- ing and he rescues us. I take a comfortable right turn later, reminding myself


that sometimes things are really that easy: right means right. Ten, we talk about lift-off – with each other, and over the radio for clearance. We get the okay, and Dan explains just


Editor Brenlee loved the experience but will likely stick with her current career.


as we pick up speed that I am looking to use the horizon as a reference – continuing to watch it as we climb upward, pulling up slightly on the control column. (It’s sensitive and reacts immediately.) A bit of a roadblock sets in at this point – literally. Because


I’m so short, I can’t even see the horizon over the dashboard. I strain against my seat a bit, but in the end, I just accept it – at least I don’t have to look out for other cars. Once we straighten off and I have a good view of where we


are, high above Selkirk, I’m relaxed – it’s like driving with no obstructions. Of course, Dan is “trimming” the aircraft for me, but I am in control of a plane in flight – and I’m totally okay with it.


Te air pockets that cause some turbulence are much more


settling when Dan has the wheel, because I still don’t quite have the confidence to believe I’m not the cause of them. By the time he asks me to take over again, I’m happy to. Once we’ve successfully landed, he tells me that flying is


usually all or nothing: people are either hooked and can’t wait to go up again, or they know it’s not for them. I am happily somewhere in the middle: I’m glad I got the


opportunity, but I don’t think I’ve found a new career. Tey do say it’s best to write from experience. Want to try your own familiarization flight? Contact Win-


nipeg Aviation at 204-338-7923, or visit www.winnipegavia- tion.com.


Fixing bikes leads to promising career as a Millwright K


ristie Latta was in her second year of fine arts in univer- sity when she discovered something unexpected: an interest in the skilled trades. It all began when a profes-


sor asked if anyone in her class was interested in welding a sculpture as a project. “I remember thinking – this is so cool!” However, soon afterward, Latta decided university was


not the right fit for her. With a student loan to pay off, she took various jobs to earn a living, including working as a bike messenger. When her bike required some major repair work, Latta had


no money to fix it or to buy a new one. She didn’t know where to turn, until one of her friends suggested the Bike Dump, a local, volunteer-run community project that provides instruction in how to fix and build bikes. Latta remembers feeling unsure of her skills when it came


to working with tools. “I was almost shaking I was so nerv- ous,” she says. But as she gained the skills to fix her own bike, she found that not only was she comfortable working with tools, she was also pretty good at it. “I realized I had a knack for fixing things and wanted to share my experience with others.” Latta began volunteering at the Bike Dump on women-


only nights. It was this experience that made her realize she wanted to focus her career on work in the skilled trades. In September 2013, Latta applied to become a junior techni- cian in the trade of Industrial Mechanic (Millwright) and succeeded in landing the job. All-encompassing trade


An industrial mechanic – also known as a millwright – in-


Discovering she had a knack for fixing things was the first step into the skilled trades for Kristie Latta.


June 2015


stalls, tests, removes, repairs and services a wide variety of industrial machinery and equipment. Industrial mechanics also read blueprints, drawings and manuals to determine repairs and work procedures, and perform preventative maintenance. “It’s an all-encompassing trade where you can specialize in any number of different areas,” explains Latta, adding that


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she found the prospect of such diversity to be very appealing. Even so, she describes the experience as a roller-coaster. “Tere were lots of ups and downs,” she says. “I’ve seen it


all; from people believing I was sent to a job site as a practical joke, to doing office filing during slow times. I felt discour- aged. I knew I was good at my job, but I kept wondering: am I being given these tasks because I’m a woman?” At this low point in her career, Latta was invited to the


Building Bridges: Women in Non-traditional Trades forum. Te experience reminded her of the women-only nights at the Bike Dump and, in the same way, it boosted her confidence. “I had been feeling unsure of my career choice. Te forum inspired me to stick with it.” Gender doesn’t matter


Latta wants to be part of a movement to promote the un-


derstanding that gender doesn’t matter when it comes to the skilled trades. “Male or female, we all start at the same place and are put through the motions.” Te main thing is to find out what you are good at, she


adds. “Some people are mechanically inclined, others are not. Your own skills may surprise you.” Latta is aiming to complete her hours as a level one ap-


prentice this summer and then to attend technical training to move up to level two. Although getting started wasn’t always easy, Latta explains


that she would not have been driven to complete her certifica- tion without the challenges she faced. “I definitely had some hurdles to jump, but these hurdles


have given me the confidence to know that I can succeed at this career.” Apprenticeship programs consist of about 80 per cent


on-the-job, practical training, and 20 per cent in-school technical training. To find out more about the skilled trades and how you can become an apprentice, visit manitoba.ca/ tradecareers. -Apprenticeship Manitoba


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