A national network of women pilots have opened up their homes to an 18-year-old flying her way solo around Australia.
Chloe Familton has spent the last month on an epic journey across the country hoping to inspire other young woman while raising money for charity at the same time.
And she hasn’t had to look far for accommodation at each of her stops.
She recently stayed overnight in Geraldton in WA’s Mid West, bound for her next stop in Jandakot, south of Perth.
In Geraldton, she was hosted by Wendy Mann from the Australian Womens Pilots’ Association.
The association was founded by Nancy Bird Walton, one of the country’s first women aviators, and is designed to support up-and-coming female pilots.
The support doesn’t end when Ms Familton is in the air, with many people around the country tracking her journey.
“I have almost a second family in aviation in the Sunshine Coast, who hosted me for a few days, and still track me and text me,” Ms Familton said.
“Up in Darwin, some of the air traffic controllers there told me that they have an alert that will go off every time the transponder for my aircraft registers, which means I’m in the air.
“So people all around Australia are tracking me.”
A Sydney local, Ms Familton’s journey began in Cessnock, New South Wales a month ago, and has covered Australia’s sunshine coast and top end.
She is celebrating her recent acceptance into the Airforce and says part of her mission is inspiring other young women to take up the pilot seat.
Ms Familton said throughout the journey she would be fundraising for the charity A Start in Life, which helps young people overcome barriers in accessing education.
“It’s providing financial support for school equipment, supplies for families, and they have programs such as career mentoring and focusing on building skills,” she said.
“I think that lines up incredibly well with my flight and my experience in aviation.”
Ms Familton’s journey will end in Caloundra, in Queensland’s south.
(ABC)
