A mother and daughter made history when they teamed up topilota Southwest flight earlier this month.
Captain Holly Petitt and First Officer Keely Petitt became the first mother-daughter pilot duo in company history when they flew from Denver to St. Louis on July 23, according to apress releasefrom the airline.
“It’s been a dream come true,” Holly said in a statement. “First, I found this career and fell in love with it, and then that one of my kids fell into this and in love with this career too. It’s surreal.”
Southwest Airlines Co. | Schelly Stone
Holly began her aviation career as a flight attendant right after college, but after one fateful flight, she realized she wanted to become a pilot.
As she took flight lessons, Holly “welcomed three beautiful kids,” supporting her family as a full-time mom — and with the support of her husband and mom, she was able to make her dream of being a pilot a reality.
“It was the most amazing interview of my life,” Holly said of becoming a Southwest pilot in acompany blog post. “Eighteen years later and I’m still giddy to do my job.”
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Keely, who fell in love with flying when she was just 14 years old, followed her mother’s footsteps. She eventually earned her pilot’s license and scored an internship with Southwest Airlines in 2017 to further her aviation career.
“Southwest was always the end goal for me,” Keely shared. “There was really never any other option.”
“Not only are Holly and Keely making Southwest history, but also they’re breaking barriers and empowering women of all ages to pursue their dreams in aviation, and pun intended, reach for the skies,” the company shared in a statement.
According to thePilot Institute, only 6 percent of pilots are female.
Reflecting on the big day, Holly shared that the morning of July 23 was “very emotional.”
source: people.com
