Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 18

PREFLIGHT FIVE QUESTIONS
BY JULIE SUMMERS WALKER
AHNIKA JOHNSON
GOING WHERE THE FLYING TAKES HER
OH, THE PEOPLE WE MEET. IN HOOD
River, Oregon, for a story on flight school
and aerial imaging company TacAero
(see " Off the Grid, " January 2023 AOPA
Pilot), we found a young woman mightily
tugging a Cessna 172 uphill to its
hangar. Just 17 years old, Ahnika Johnson
uprooted and left home in Minnesota to
work with TacAero's imaging division,
Hood Tech Aero, joining this band of
entrepreneurs and building flight time.
" I am a private pilot with high performance
and complex endorsements, as
well as tailwheel time. I am currently
working for Hood Tech Aero as a remote
sensing technician and payload operator.
We work on aerial targeting and surveys,
then I process the imagery into final
products for customers. I have about 130
hours of total time, and I am planning
on continuing to build hours until I get
my commercial certification. I am still
exploring possibilities so I am not sure
what my long-term plans will be, but I
am open to wherever my path takes me. "
How did you get started in aviation?
I was inspired to become a pilot after
I spoke to a commercial pilot in the
cockpit before an airline flight when
I was 14. Then, a couple years later, I
job shadowed at a regional airline, and
they let me have a headset to listen to
air traffic control. When I was 17, the
pilot that I job shadowed opened a
flight school, and I became one of the
first students.
Biggest challenges? The biggest challenges
I faced in my early flight training
was balancing my work schedule and
flying in the summer Minnesota
weather. I had to switch around working
in the mornings to try to beat the winds
in the afternoon.
Favorite aircraft? My favorite aircraft
is the Top Cub because of its capabilities
to land with little runway and the
window view is amazing. Recently, I
flew from Iowa to Oregon in a Cub, and
it was breathtaking to see the northern
states from a low altitude.
Favorite aviation-related activity?
I love attending airshows and getting
to meet pilots from all sorts of backgrounds.
I enjoy hearing stories about
what pilots and future pilots are wanting
to do, as well as learning from experienced
pilots how they got where they
are. I am also always more than happy to
hop on a flight or sit in an aircraft that is
new to me when offered.
Advice for students? My advice for
student pilots would be to not be too
hard on yourself because it is OK if you
don't immediately comprehend all the
information you are given. Another
piece of insight would be to give yourself
enough time to study and try to prevent
procrastination.
julie.walker@aopa.org
18 FLIGHT TRAINING MARCH/APRIL 2023
CHRIS ROSE

Flight Training - March/April 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Flight Training - March/April 2023

Contents
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - Intro
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - Cover1
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - Cover2
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - Contents
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 2
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 3
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 4
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 5
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 6
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 7
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 8
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 9
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 10
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 11
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 12
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 13
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 14
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 15
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 16
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 17
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 18
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 19
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 20
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 21
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 22
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 23
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 24
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 25
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 26
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 27
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 28
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 29
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 30
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 31
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 32
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 33
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 34
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 35
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 36
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 37
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Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 41
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 42
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Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 49
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 50
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 51
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Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 54
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 55
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - 56
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - Cover3
Flight Training - March/April 2023 - Cover4
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