Monica Fleck ’18 Takes Flight Thanks to Confidence Built at Hutchison

I was introduced to the Navy as a career option by my 10th grade chemistry teacher, Dr. Snider, who recommended that I apply for an internship at a Naval Research Lab. Although I didn't end up getting that internship, I started researching more about the Navy after that.

After starting at the Naval Academy, I decided on aviation because of my interest in aerospace engineering and space exploration, which was something I discovered at Hutchison through the amazing science program and teachers. The biggest draw to Naval aviation for me was the people in the community. Every single aviator I talked to while at the academy absolutely loved their job and was so excited to talk about it. I also think it's a unique way to incorporate my aerospace engineering degree into my job.

I’m currently in Primary Flight Training, which is the second of three training programs I’ll go through before getting my wings and graduating as a Naval Aviator. While in primary, I’m learning to fly the T-6B and we’re focusing on the fundamentals of a lot of different areas of flying, including visual flight, instrument flight, aerobatics, and formation flight. At the end of primary, we’re selected for what type of aircraft we’ll fly in the fleet, and I’m hoping to select helicopters. 

I recently flew my first solo (flight without an instructor), and now I’m starting on instrument flight. My first solo flight was really exciting! It was nerve-wracking being alone while I was starting up the plane and going through all of my pre-flight checks, but as soon as I took off, it was almost like muscle memory to go through the flight.

My biggest advice for anyone thinking about joining the military is to make sure it’s really for you. Try to talk to people outside of just admissions or recruiting personnel who have been in or are currently serving. The military does have great opportunities and it’s a great path for a lot of people, but it’s not necessarily for everyone.

The process of deciding whether or not the military was for me was kind of a long one. At the Naval Academy, you don’t sign your commitment to serve until the beginning of your junior year, and you have plenty of time to learn and speak to people before deciding for sure. I initially thought the military was for me because it could open a lot of doors to fields that I’m interested in, which is still true. Ultimately, I decided to continue with my commitment after speaking a lot with mentors at the Naval Academy and learning about how I can best help people from my position in the military, which is why I want to select helicopters with the ultimate goal of working in search and rescue.