problem: Barbara had left school at 15. She had no A-levels, no university degree, none of the qualifications the aviation industry expected. If she wanted to become a pilot, she’d have to build that foundation herself.So she did. While working full-time as an air traffic controller, she studied for A-levels in Geography, English Law, and Constitutional Law. She initially thought she might study law—a respectable profession, good career prospects.But the more time she spent at Gatwick, watching pilots, listening to them talk about flying, the more she knew: she didn’t want to argue cases in courtrooms. She wanted to fly.The path forward was clear—and terrifying. Flight training was expensive. Commercial pilot training was even more expensive. Barbara didn’t come from wealth. She had no family connections in aviation. She had no sponsor.She had a bank willing to loan her £10,000—an enormous sum in the early 1980s, equivalent to roughly £40,000-50,000 today.She took the loan. She bet everything on herself.Barbara enrolled in flight school and earned her private pilot’s license. Then she tackled the commercial license through a grueling two-year distance learning program while still working. In 1982, she qualified as a commercial
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