ALL PHOTOS COURTESY JORDAN NIETERS


FUTURE FACES By Jaasmin Foote


HAI Commercial Helicopter Pilot Rating


Scholarship Winner Jordan Nieters Student becomes tour pilot with goal of flying in utility sector.


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ROWING UP IN BOZEMAN, MONTANA, Jordan Nieters had no aviation professionals in his family. His closest contact with helicop-


ters was when he saw one hovering overhead one day. From that point on, whenever he saw a helicopter, he was so captivated that he dropped whatever he was doing just to watch it in action. Jordan had always assumed military service was the only route to becoming a helicopter pilot, but four years ago he learned that wasn’t true. One day, Jordan raved to his then-fiancée (now wife) about a helicopter he’d seen, and she asked him if he could fly one locally. He found a local flight school and took an introductory flight. By the next day, he was hooked on aviation and decided he wanted to fly professionally. Jordan worked six to seven days a week to save enough money to enroll at Silverhawk Aviation Academy in Caldwell, Idaho, in April 2019 and pursue his dream of becoming a pilot.


58 ROTOR JUNE 2021


On Mar. 25, 2020, just one week before he was


scheduled to take his commercial checkride, Jordan’s school received orders to shut down due to COVID-19. But he used the disappointment to his advantage. “Flying is a ‘use it or lose it’ kind of skill,” says Jordan.


“You can never study too much, so the time off has helped me dial in the ground knowledge and prepare for whatever the DPE [designated pilot examiner] throws at me.”


Although Jordan had to acclimate to learning online,


he acknowledges that others had it worse than he did— at least he was still able to pursue his training. Once Silverhawk reopened in May 2020, Jordan successfully completed his commercial checkride. Jordan says the tools that benefited him most during his training are collaboration and mentorship. He urges student pilots to form study groups to gain other perspectives.


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