FUTURE FACES By Jaasmin Foote
Matt Goodrich, Helicopter Pilot, Instructor, and
Operator Former computer scientist finds his passion, career success in rotorcraft flight.
F
OR SOME, THE INSPIRATION TO fly for a living comes from family members who work in aviation.
But that wasn’t what drew Matt Goodrich to flying. His love of the aviation industry, Matt
says, stems from the US Air Force Academy, located in Colorado Springs, only an hour’s drive from his childhood home in Parker, Colorado. Matt’s experience attend- ing events at the academy and seeing the aircraft fly largely fueled his passion for aviation.
A New Career The first time Matt seriously considered becoming a pilot came following a helicop- ter tour he took in Alaska in summer 2012. He dismissed the idea as unrealistic, how- ever, and pursued a career in computer sci- ence instead. While working behind a desk for a few
years and reflecting on his early enthusi- asm for aviation, Matt decided to take heli- copter flying lessons. He knew by the end of his private pilot license training that he wanted to switch careers and find a job as a professional helicopter pilot. But it wasn’t easy.
Matt faced several setbacks early in his
new career. “The first series of trials occurred during the training itself, where I struggled to learn a brand-new skill,” says Matt. “I remember failing my first stage check and questioning if I was fit to become a pilot. But I didn’t give up. I collaborated with other students and studied every day.
56 ROTOR MARCH 2022
“I built muscle memory practic- ing maneuvers in a hangared heli- copter, a technique called ‘chair flying,’” Matt continues. “The train- ing was rigorous, but it taught me the skills I needed to become a professional.” Matt found the training process demanding not only mentally but monetarily, as well. “It was finan- cially challenging to make it through my CFII training,” he says. “All my paycheck and personal savings went toward training. Every minute of flight time counted.” After completing his studies, Matt had to find a job, an experience that left him “taking steps to create my own work,” he says.
One such step entailed acquiring turbine flight time as well as networking with other professionals through his training and attending HAI HELI-EXPO®
and other
conferences. “Seeking work as a new pilot taught me the importance of networking,” Matt says. “Becoming qualified to fly turbine helicop- ters took patience and perseverance, in part because the experience and insurance requirements for turbine helicopters are much higher than for piston helicopters.”
Networking and Collaboration ‘Mean Everything’ Matt is quick to credit those who’ve men- tored and trained him along his path to becoming a rotorcraft pilot, including the person he says was his biggest role model, helicopter CFI Gary Cleveland, owner of
Cleveland Helicopter Services in Plymouth, Indiana. Cleveland guided Matt as a new instructor. “Gary opened my eyes to the commer-
cial aviation world,” Matt says. “I had come from a rigid flight school, where I was trained effectively as a private pilot but wasn’t given the freedom to explore my limits. Gary showed me that side of avia- tion and taught me how to mentor other new pilots in an industry where it can be difficult to get started. Most importantly, he taught me how to build a helicopter business.” Those business lessons sparked Matt’s strong entrepreneurial spirit. After teaching a few students with Gary, in June 2020 Matt began his own flight-instruction busi- ness, Pilot In Command, also based in Plymouth. The venture involved collaborat- ing with Gary in Plymouth and traveling to students in places as far apart as Florida and Wyoming.
In October 2020, Matt teamed up with
friend Jessica Meiris to open a second business, a tour company called Columbus Helicopter Tours in Columbus, Ohio. He
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