Around the Patch: Heart and Seoul

Brandt’s story is inspiring for the monumental effort she puts into something that most of us take for granted: getting to the airport. Her husband, a U.S. Army officer, is stationed in South Korea, where general aviation is essentially nonexistent. When Brandt wanted to complete her instrument rating, it wasn’t a matter of driving to the airport and finding a good instructor. She had to plan months in advance, study alone on the far side of the globe, and coordinate a six-week trip back to the United States.

“It was always my plan to get my instrument rating,” says Brandt, who learned midway through her private pilot training in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, that her husband soon would be transferred to Korea. She said the news of the transfer was “a very unwelcome surprise,” because she knew she wouldn’t be able to pursue her new passion overseas.

We often think about the sacrifices members of the military make for our country, but it is easy to forget what their families give up. For Brandt, finding aviation was “huge,” as she previously had put her dreams of finishing her mechanical engineering degree on hold because of the demands of military life. Frequent moves far from engineering schools made completing the degree impossible.

When her husband discovered a local airport at Fort Leavenworth where Brandt could learn to fly, she was thrilled. Flying appealed to both her adventurous spirit and her mechanical mind. She was so certain she would love it that she got her medical certificate before her discovery flight. “I went from the medical appointment to the airfield,” she recalled. “When I heard my flight instructor make the first radio call announcing our position at the runway entrance, my heart did a back flip. I knew I had found my passion.”

Four weeks after Brandt passed her private pilot checkride, her family of three moved to Korea—where, she lamented, “there is no GA and no instrument flying.” But Brandt wasn’t giving up on her instrument rating—that was one sacrifice she wouldn’t make. She bought Gleim materials to study on her own for the knowledge test. She reached out to experts over the internet when she couldn’t make sense of new concepts. She traveled 90 minutes to the nearest testing center to take her exam. Then on March 30, Brandt flew to Kansas to begin the aggressive training schedule her instructor had worked out in order for her to complete her instrument rating in one visit. She passed her instrument checkride on May 6—just five days before her return flight to Seoul.

The experience was life-changing. “Being engrossed full-time in something meaningful, and achieving something of significance, gave me greater confidence, faith, and hope—and a new perspective on life,” she remarked. “I always found it frustrating to have worked so hard at going to school for so many years and still not have even my bachelor’s degree at age 39. Finally achieving something important rejuvenated me and has inspired me to pursue my other goals.”

Brandt’s family is scheduled to return to the United States in 2017 and she is already eyeing those other goals, including more pilot training and finishing her mechanical engineering degree. Brandt says she would like to fly professionally one day. She also hopes to make a bigger impact in the world, serving as an inspiration to others to overcome obstacles and pursue their dreams. For this determined military spouse, who traveled 10,000 miles to get her instrument rating—and now won’t let even the U.S. Army stop her from achieving her goals—it’s a good bet she is already having that impact.