Wendy Yawching – the first female captain of an aircraft at BWIA (the predecessor of Caribbean Airlines) – has released a book not only about her groundbreaking journey, but full of encouragement for anyone to believe and follow their dreams. Jeremy Taylor learns more
Wendy Yawching was only 10 years old when she decided to become a pilot. Not just a pilot, but a captain of a large commercial airliner. Over the years people told her: Forget it, flying is a boy’s job, girls don’t fly planes, just get married and be a good wife and mother.
But Wendy, a tenacious and self-directed Trinidadian, quickly learned to say “I can. I will. Look at me” – and do her thing regardless.
She has now published a memoir – The courage to fly — describing how he did it. She had to finance her long rigorous training and discover how much hard work and relentless sacrifices go into becoming a pilot. She had to earn respect as a woman in a male-dominated world.
But she emerged triumphantly as a pilot, and eventually captain—the first woman to captain a jetliner for BWIA, the predecessor of Caribbean Airlines. Her sheer joy of flying leaps from every page.
But The courage to fly it’s not just about flying planes. Underpinning the pilots’ stories is a story about believing in yourself, marching through dark places, and facing fear.
Tips for a brave life follow each chapter. And the adventure of flying is matched by a lifetime of outdoor adventure travel, from skydiving to running an eco-travel business to launching an assault on Mount Everest Base Camp.
The courage to fly is a simple and chatty memoir designed to inspire confidence. It leaves its author withdrawn from flying, but pursuing a new passion: a consultancy dealing in Feng Shui and self-empowerment, the latter especially aimed at women and girls seeking the courage to fly.
The courage to fly by Wendy Yawching (self-published 2022, ISBN 979-8-218-06723-6)
