Plane & Pen

Katherine S. Stafford

is a freelance writer, aviation enthusiast, and member of Women in Aviation International. She has been published in General Aviation News, Aviation for Women magazine, and the Hera Aviation Group blog. Learn more about her exciting - and turbulent - aviation journey and hear some inspirational stories of other women in aviation here on Plane & Pen.

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Katherine S. Stafford

Jan 152 min read

13 Months

Some say it takes 13 months to complete a grieving cycle. This may also be the length of chrysalis-ation for this particular critter--me....

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Katherine S. Stafford

Dec 13, 20231 min read

IMUA!

Since my last post, the Maui fires destroyed the present and past of Lahaina and the news broke of Alaska Airlines buying 94-year-old...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Oct 4, 20232 min read

Haole to Honorary

"Hey! I'm off probation!" I texted excitedly to a friend. "Where have you been?!" he replied. That's when I realized my non-aviation...

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Katherine S. Stafford

May 22, 20232 min read

Maui for Mother's Day

We all know most people working with an airline are in it because either they love aviation, they love to travel, or both. It's...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Feb 16, 20232 min read

Go-arounds Always Lead to a Landing

What is a go-around in aviation terms? According to the American Heritage on-line dictionary, a go-around is "a landing approach that...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Nov 17, 20222 min read

Aircraft Hopping with Boone

My seven year old son, Boone, set the ground rules for this year's mommy-son adventure. We must fly in and out of Burbank. We should be...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Nov 17, 20222 min read

Birdwatching

Birdwatching, in all senses of the word, is what I do when I go to Bayfront Park near SFO. Let me take you with me! I open FlightRadar24...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Aug 2, 20222 min read

Two Roads Converge

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,/ And sorry I could not travel both/ And be one traveler, long I stood/ And looked down one as far as...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Jul 13, 20225 min read

Humility and Courage

A few weeks ago I started my job as a ramp agent for Southwest Airlines. This was a new-to-me position in a field in which I had never...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Jun 21, 20222 min read

To Fist Pump Or Not To Fist Pump

How do you know when you are an anomaly? Ask your instructor how many women ramp agents there are out of over 100 rampers at your station...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Apr 25, 20222 min read

When The Stars Align

Have you ever made a promise to yourself...and kept it? Last year, during the thick of self-sacrifice and "adulting" desperation, I told...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Mar 8, 20222 min read

A Wrong Turn Leads to the Right Place

Driving home to San Francisco from a job down peninsula I made an wrong turn. To be honest, I exited the freeway near the airport on a...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Aug 24, 20213 min read

Airshow He Said, She Said

My first grader son and I headed to what might have been the first official airshow in California in 2021. The 40th annual Wings Over...

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Katherine S. Stafford

Jul 29, 20213 min read

Stepping Right Up to Aviation

My 6 year-old son and I had a mommy-son date to Hiller Aviation Museum this week. With the pandemic cancelling our favorite local airshow...

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Katherine S. Stafford

May 14, 20212 min read

Flying and Writing: Unlikely Sisters

How is flying like writing? Natalie Goldberg, a writing teacher and author, believes that the act of repeated, time-specific, automatic...

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Katherine S. Stafford

May 13, 20211 min read

Flying Is In My Blood

The Lockheed T-33. Fast. Loud. Funny-lookin'. Minutes ago I spoke to my Uncle Stan who flew one of these babies in the mid-1950's, when...

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Why Do I Love Planes and Flying So Much?

Katherine S. Stafford

May 13, 20214 min read

Why Do I Love Planes and Flying So Much?

People don't just say what they say for no reason. Their ideas come from something, an experience, a projection, a need to sound...

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Katherine S. Stafford

May 13, 20212 min read

Tough Decisions

Spring Break. A week without preschool for my son. A week without time to study ground school or prep for flights, let alone any writing....

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Katherine S. Stafford

May 13, 20212 min read

One Tired Momma

I'll admit it. I'm one tired mama. I am experiencing everyday life--keeping children fed, clean and well-slept while coordinating life...

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Katherine S. Stafford

May 13, 20212 min read

Keeping The Course

In the distance turboprops drone…. What have I been doing to move my life in aviation forward in the past two weeks? Adding thrust? I’d...

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PUBLICATIONS

Forget Motivation - Cultivate Discipline

Published with Hera Aviation Group

May 28, 2021

A single mom at 19, Christy Wong worked full-time and earned a double major, all the while admiring the 737s flying over Las Vegas.

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The Tough Love of Aviation -- I Will Not Quit

Published with Hera Aviation Group

May 20, 2021

One of the most human and valuable of all traits is our ability to adapt. Pivot or perish could be a slogan for the pandemic and for surviving the aviation industry.

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Momma Dreams of Flying

https://generalaviationnews.com/2019/08/22/momma-dreams-of-flying/

Published in General Aviation News 8/22/2019

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Father's Day Fly In Return to 2O1

https://generalaviationnews.com/2019/06/24/fathers-day-fly-in-returns-to-2o1/

Published in General Aviation News 6/24/2019

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Plane & Pen

AVIATION BLOG

13 Months

IMUA!

Haole to Honorary

Maui for Mother's Day

Go-arounds Always Lead to a Landing

Aircraft Hopping with Boone

Birdwatching

Two Roads Converge

Humility and Courage

To Fist Pump Or Not To Fist Pump

When The Stars Align

A Wrong Turn Leads to the Right Place

Airshow He Said, She Said

Stepping Right Up to Aviation

Flying and Writing: Unlikely Sisters

Flying Is In My Blood

Why Do I Love Planes and Flying So Much?

Tough Decisions

One Tired Momma

Keeping The Course

PUBLICATIONS

Forget Motivation - Cultivate Discipline

The Tough Love of Aviation -- I Will Not Quit

Momma Dreams of Flying

Father's Day Fly In Return to 2O1

Contact

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