The first part of our interview with our next guest, Allister Bridger. From a typical childhood in Tunbridge Wells, to a career in the Royal Air Force, and subsequently rising to such positions as Director of Flight Operations at British Airways, flying has been a huge part of Al’s life. But initially, living under the glide path for Gatwick Airport was only “peripheral”, and it wasn’t until a family holiday at the age of 12 on a Monarch airliner that he caught the flying bug! From that initial spark, Al describes to Harriett how the goal of being a pilot informed his choices of subjects in school, and how the RAF Air Cadets were an invaluable factor in achieving his PPL and ultimately his flying dreams. Despite the aid of the ATC however, it would not be a simple path to becoming an airline pilot: what was needed first was a “bucket of determination” in the face of adversity. Indeed, despite the success he has since achieved with the airline, as a teenage applicant British Airways rejected Al’s application, and thus he spent nearly a decade as a fast jet pilot in the RAF. Al is extremely humble in describing this chapter of his life, and reflects on the positives that these initial hurdles have since brought him, and he is especially keen to share how it has informed his approach to mentoring and instruction.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

We close our conversation with Katy Lee MBE, with a discussion around the importance of mental health and the importance of support across all industries and working environments. Katy was responsible for establishing Pilots Together, a text service for confidential mental health support for pilots, and she speaks movingly about how the loss of her father has fed her drive to support these measures. Katy and Harriett also share advice on reaching out for help, and how to recognise the signs in your own mental health that indicate you might need support. After Pilots Together, Katy has also established Aviation in Reach, an organisation to offer mentoring opportunities to those aspiring to join the aviation industry, and she discusses the significance of diversity, as well as how she believes this can be further encouraged.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the second part of our conversation with Katy, she discusses with Harriett what she learned during her time as a teacher. She describes how some of the skills she applied to her teaching are applicable to everyday life, especially in her current training roles. On a similar note, Katy describes her role within the Air Training Corps, and how her involvement has grown to include taking part in expanding the use of drones and new technology for young people. Although this environment was totally new to her, Katy tells us how her confidence in her own grounding as a pilot allowed her to expand and learn new skills. We also hear what resilience means to Katy, and she reflects on some of the times of self-doubt that she has overcome as a woman in a male-dominated industry. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

Our next guest is Katy Lee MBE: a First Officer on the 737-800, RAF Air Training Corps officer, and Chair of Trustees for the charity Aviation in Reach. Such a passion for flying is unsurprising given Katy’s upbringing by her flight crew parents - Katy was able to pursue this passion despite academic pressures in school, by heading straight to flying school as opposed to university. Together with fellow commercial pilot Harriett, she discusses some of the challenges that she faced in her training, as well as the positive impact that gender neutral language and policies can have in creating an equitable platform. Katy also shares how the economic downturn of 2009 led to her flying career being prematurely paused, and she describes how a temporary switch to teaching has continued to drive her support of youth endeavours. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the final part of our conversation with Dr Catherine Ruddick, she discusses with Harriett how therapy and communication has helped her to confront the well-intentioned but unhelpful coping strategies she had developed in childhood. These new strategies have led to Catherine’s increased mental resilience, which has been vital in bouncing back and reaching out when at a low ebb. In an emotional closing to our conversation, Catherine also opens up on her feeling of being “different”, both as a woman in the Army but especially as a gay woman, at a time when it was still ‘incompatible with service life’.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

For the third part of our conversation with Dr Catherine Ruddick, we learn about how opening up about mental health struggles can have a transformative effect on quality of life. Catherine describes to Harriett how her first experience of verbalising these struggles with a therapist at Headley Court has led to a healthier lifestyle with open dialogues. This took on a greater significance when Catherine was medically discharged from the Army, and had to find a new career. Having found her new calling as a GP, Catherine describes the challenges and delays that marked her journey towards her current position, and reflects on the resilience that she developed along the way - something that was to become vital during the Coronavirus pandemic. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

For the second part of our conversation with Dr Catherine Ruddick, she discusses how her foray into physiotherapy reawakened a medical passion, and coincided with an inexorable pull back to military life. Having joined the Territorial Army, Catherine was able to complete the training required to become a surgeon in the Armed Forces. However, despite these successes, she shares with Harriett how this still led to an identity crisis, and mental health struggles. In her recuperation time, Catherine embarked on a journey to “find me”, and discusses the things she learned: the importance of being assertive in saying no when struggling, the benefit of counselling and sharing her thoughts and feelings, and gaining a sense of perspective on the challenges she was facing. This recovery period culminated in visiting Aerobility, and embarking on a journey to flying. Through flying, Catherine has been able to satisfy her feelings following the premature end of her RAF career, and the overall benefit to her mental health has allowed her to attain her medical, and subsequently her PPL.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the first of our episodes in conversation with Dr Catherine Ruddick, we hear how Catherine was fixated on flying from a young age, growing up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Moving quickly from the Air Cadets, through a University Air Squadron, Catherine was successful in her application to the RAF. Her career as a prospective Navigator was cut short by injury however, and she discusses with Harriett how her response to the setback of a medical discharge, and how her upbringing taught her to reframe these challenges, and believe that “you can do anything that you want to”. Out of this “grieving process” came a decision to refocus on the practice that had helped her so much, and led to a successful period working as a physiotherapist. Along with many lessons learned regarding how to respond to failure, Harriett and Catherine discuss the importance of motivation, creativity, and how support networks and sharing can relieve life’s burdens, and aid recovery.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the final part of our conversation with Brian Wheeler, attention turns to his recovery; having fought the odds by even walking again, he describes his journey back to running, culminating in a half marathon. In more recent years, Brian has also returned to flying, and even celebrated the 5th anniversary of being told he would never walk again, by walking the length of a marathon around New York City. Throughout, Brian is candid in describing the physical struggles he has faced, as well as challenging the perceptions around hidden disability. Other topics of discussion include the importance of empathy in leadership, and the future of disabled aviation.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

Having overcome the prognosis of never walking again, Brian describes how his recovery was further disrupted by more uncertainty around his health. Yet, these challenges were met by Brian’s indomitable stubbornness, and also the friendships made with fellow patients, such as Tariq. In refusing to be cowed by the adversity he faced, Brian became a self-described ‘cantankerous old git’, and there is perhaps no better example than when he refused to follow his hospital’s instructions to pick a wheelchair “for the rest of your life”. In more candid conversation, Brian and Harriett discuss his journey through physiotherapy, learning to crawl and walk again. The importance of choosing the right environment is a key theme in this episode, as is the significance of the people that surround and support you in recovery, which is a ‘collaborative process’.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In part two of our chat with Brian Wheeler, he and Harriett discuss the role that confidence and perception play in perpetuating the gender gap. Brian reflects on a conversation with a colleague about the reversal of gender balance, and how this helped him to understand the barriers to diversity that remain. From there, Harriett and Brian discuss equity versus equality, leadership, and the toxic influence of technology and social media in the modern age; especially on children. We then learn how, in 2018, Brian’s life was changed when a shattered spinal column disk led to emergency spinal surgery and left him paralysed, with the strong possibility of never walking again. Following a moving account of his “out of body” diagnosis with cauda equina syndrome, Brian’s defiance in the face of life-changing news is stark, and what follows is a frank and honest reflection on his years of recovery. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

Our next guest on Inspire-Ability is Aerobility COO, NATS Deputy General Manager, and disability advocate Brian Wheeler. In the first of four episodes in conversation with Brian, Harriett discusses the impact of his naval upbringing, and how his early dream to fly led to a single-minded pursuit of a British Airways cadetship during his latter schooling. Although this determination would lead to academic struggles, Brian’s passion for flight was little diminished, and an eventful month in the USA allowed him to gain his PPL. Despite this, among other achievements, Brian would have to learn to respond to failure after it was decided that he did not have the aptitude to be an airline pilot. Although this might have been “game over”, what followed was a successful career as a military and civilian air traffic controller, until May 2018, when everything changed. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In our final episode with Harvey, he shares with Harriett how he overcame the challenges discussed in episode 6. In coping with this, and as a way of responding to failure, we learn how therapy has positively impacted on Harvey’s daily life, and offered a fresh perspective on other regular challenges. From coming off social media to reconnecting with family, these recent changes have been profound, and have enabled Harvey to focus on his work in managing important advocacy movements for Aerobility, and completing a secondment with NATS. Other themes explored include the difficulties of imposter syndrome, and the importance of diversity in all aspects of life, and aviation. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In our second episode in conversation with Harvey, we learn how a trip to Africa as a teenager led to a change in his life approach. Being thrown in at the deep end as a shy child, Harvey shares how he spent weeks “making friends and making people laugh”, and he came away with a greater awareness of the importance of a support network. In his exit interview, Harvey joked that as a nervous flyer, he “might as well get a pilot’s license”; sure enough, through Aerobility he has found a passion and a community. What started as a hobby became a new way of life, and we learn how these changes encouraged Harvey to move away from medication, in order to meet certain PPL medical requirements. In a frank conversation with Harriett, Harvey also shares how his disability has impacted his mental health at times, and how he has come to terms with this as part of his “journey of recovery”. From these darker times, we hear how Aerobility and his wider support network have brought him happiness, and how important positive reinforcement can be.Trigger warning: suicide and mental health (Samaritans 116 123, National Suicide Prevention Helpline UK 0800 689 5652 or text SHOUT (85258).Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

Our second guest on this new series of Inspire-Ability is Harvey Matthewson. Anyone that has visited Aerobility in recent years will likely recognise Harvey and his laugh, as he has gone from being a front-desk volunteer, to the Ground Services Manager for Aerobility as well as managing the charity’s Equal Skies Charter advocacy initiative. In the first of three episodes in conversation with Harvey, we learn how his early years were formative both for himself, but also his family. He shares with Harriett the barriers that he faced in primary school, as his cerebral palsy began to affect his speaking and writing, and marked him as the odd one out. Despite this, Harvey describes how his “character building” childhood was no different to most, and how no adaptations were made if they could be avoided.Harvey also discusses with Harriett the personal changes that occurred when he left the “safe space” of primary school, and entered a secondary school with a specialist unit for disabled students. Although he initially felt in-between his able-bodied and more disabled classmates, Harvey eventually came to realize that, as he says: “it is okay to have a disability”. With this realization came the acceptance that he was able to let other disabled people in, and he reflects on this being the first time he learned the importance of open communication and cooperation. Lastly, Harvey describes how he feels like his life was transformed by a trip to Africa, and one big step outside his comfort zone. He embarked on his journey as a shy young man who was afraid to leave home, with a drastic fear of flying, and he returned to the UK having taken fear “out of the equation” with a new motivation in life: to learn how to fly.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the final part of our conversation with Captain Emma Henderson MBE, we learn how implementing the changes discussed in episode 3, meant that Emma “breezed” through her second Command Course, and she discusses with Harriett how these changes went on to make her a better airline Captain. It was not all plain sailing for Emma however, as we learn the shocking details of her brother-in-law’s kidnap in Colombia, and how she and her family learned to cope with their lack of control over such an ordeal. More recently, we learn how the COVID pandemic led Emma into a change of careers, from her role as a Captain with easyJet, to the CEO of the NHS support charity ‘Project Wingman’. Emma explains how she recognised the difficulties approaching the health sector, and how she worked with industry colleagues to “put an arm around” NHS workers in their darkest days. This new role as a charity CEO has brought its own rewards and challenges however, and Emma opens up on her feelings of imposter syndrome, both as a CEO and as a public speaker, among her many ongoing roles and commitments. Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the third offering from our conversation with Captain Emma Henderson, she expands on our previous episode’s ‘capacity bucket’ theory, and discusses the importance of accepting help when it is offered. Having suffered from demyelinating neuropathies and being told she may spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair, Emma describes how she was “lucky to survive”, and yet felt a need to keep flying up until the point her ailments proved debilitating, in order not to “let the side down”.  In an open and frank conversation, Emma opens up to Harriett about how she then failed “Command Course 1” by leaping back into the process too soon, and how she has since responded to these setbacks and her “second chance at life” by reevaluating her acceptance of support, and how she now approaches challenges in her many roles as a public speaker and charity CEO.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the second episode of series 2, Emma shares how her love of flying first began at the age of 18, and how a series of coincidences led to her joining a University Air Squadron; having also met her husband on UAS, and moving to New Zealand to support his RAF career, she was able to resume her flying lessons - but under one condition: “if I start flying again, I’m not stopping.” Emma shares how this led to a career as a commercial pilot upon returning to the UK, and all of the challenges that had to be overcome in this time. A key topic of discussion is the importance of a support network in managing stressful situations, and how Zammo’s “Just Say No” attitude can be employed to manage your own ‘capacity bucket’.Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

Inspire-Ability is back for a second series! Our first guest is Captain Emma Henderson MBE who chats to our host Harriett about her life, from being a military spouse through to starring in ‘Inside the Cockpit’ while a Captain with easyJet. In this first episode, Emma reflects on her childhood and the sources of inspiration that she drew on. We also learn how change can bring huge opportunities, after her husband’s RAF career took their family across the world to New Zealand. In what she describes as the “best years of our life”, Emma was able to reignite her passion for flying, as well as discovering new ways of life - including triathlon running! Episodes released every Friday afternoon. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: aerobility.com

In the final part of our chat with Tetyana, she and Harriett discuss women in aviation, from the lack of role models for girls to the dearth of aviation in education. Tetyana is a key proponent of the importance of airshows for inspiring young aviators, and she explains the challenges now that there are more pathways for girls into flying, but fewer airshows at which to inspire them. Role models is a key theme in this episode: Tetyana reflects on how she lacked her own when growing up, and is prompted to consider her own role now in inspiring young pilots. We also hear how a film about a Nobel Prize-winning mathematician helped Tetyana to understand her own mental health condition, and how encouragement to be the best that you can be, can help you to take control of the situation. In setting these mental health goals, Tetyana is able to focus more on the pathway to getting there rather than the obstacles in her path.Inspire-Ability will be back in the new year with season two. Available as a subtitled video format on our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcolE-AfelXHlfWWw-KR74A To find out more about Aerobility, and to get involved, please visit our website: www.aerobility.com