Some dreams fly high, while others crash and burn. Luckily for Tierra Bickford, her dream of becoming a pilot took off and continues to reach new heights.
Bickford currently works as an Airbus 320 captain with an accredited airline, but her journey to the skies wasn’t without turbulence.
Her father, also a pilot, introduced aviation to Bickford and her siblings at a young age.
“My dad was probably my greatest inspiration about being a pilot,” Bickford expressed, reflecting on her family’s legacy.
Bickford’s family has deep roots in aviation. Her grandfather, great uncle, brother and sister all chose to pursue a career in aviation.
It’s safe to say flying runs in the family.
Now, Bickford serves as a role model for others, attending aviation events and working as a pilot.
One girl in particular has attended the Girls in Aviation Day event hosted in Salt Lake City for the past three years, each time snapping a new smiling photo next to Bickford.
“We get a picture each year,” Bickford said, smiling about the how the little girl has grown in every picture.
Even though she was introduced to flying at a young age, Bickford said she was not always convinced it was for her.
Originally, Bickford attended the University of Hawaii where she received a degree in business administration with an emphasis on human resource management.
During her time in Hawaii, Bickford kept flying in her free time as a hobby.
“I'd go look at waterfalls, you know, fly between the islands,” she said. But soon, she realized flying was “way more fun than doing business.”
Eventually, Bickford decided to move back home to California to prove it’s never too late to follow your dreams. And so, her journey to become a full-time working pilot began.
Bickford said her business background has come in handy for coordinating professional meetings such as the annual Girls in Aviation Day event. Yet, it still took a lot of work and studying for Bickford to go from zero to airline hero.
From dawn to dusk, Bickford spent her days flying, studying and working to achieve her new dream of being a pilot.
Each morning would start with a sunrise flight to rack up her hours and get hands-on flight experience, followed by hours of studying. According to Bickford, flying is so much more than just being in the sky.
“Flying, I would say, is probably maybe like 40% skill, 30% skill, and then 70 or 60% knowledge. And you're just constantly studying,” she said.
And after studying, she would hit the gym and go to work at P.F. Chang’s to pay for her flight expenses.
It took around three years and 300 hours of flying from the time Bickford started flight training to the time she entered her first paid job as a pilot.
“I flew fire survey planes, so we'd go and spot fires in California, and then I would drop a little pin, and then the real fire bombers would come,” Bickford explained.
She went on to fly service planes across the U.S. and Canada, capturing photos for housing projects. She later moved on to flying overnight cargo before joining Compass Airlines — now SkyWest — as a first officer and later a captain. Eventually, she transitioned to her current role, flying the Airbus 320.
Throughout her career Bickford has run into countless issues, including a total of four engine failures, each of which she handled with poise.
“I always take a deep breath. Breathe in through your nose, exhale, and then deal with the emergency," Bickford said. "It's very, very rare you're gonna encounter an emergency where things need to happen right now, at this moment.”
One specific emergency occurred while Bickford was flying cargo overnight from Mexico to Detroit. Bickford and the captain had been flying all night when one of their engines failed.
Bickford explained pilots are trained to handle major emergencies with memorized steps they need to follow.
“So, we did our steps, declared an emergency, and then there was an airfield that was like 20 miles away," she said. "And so, we just went, landed.”
Bickford said decision-making skills are critical for a captain, and sometimes that means relying on others.
“I'm not the smartest person in the room, but I can create a room full of really, really smart people and create the best outcome,” she said.
These decision-making skills don’t always apply to mechanical issues — they also apply to passengers as well.
Bickford recalled a time when an older woman flying first class refused to stow her purse during takeoff and landing. Due to regulations, the purse needed to be secured, but the woman resisted.
Bickford and the flight attendants put their heads together to figure out how to “outsmart the old lady.”
Eventually they were able to compromise by putting her purse in an overhead bin where she could see it for takeoff and landing. Once airborne, they returned the purse.
Despite the challenges, Bickford has loved every part of her aviation career.
“I have loved every moment of my career and my journey to get here. I go to work, and I love it,” she said.
For anyone considering a career in aviation, Bickford has simple advice: follow your passions.
“If you're passionate about aviation, if it's something you want to do, do it. It's hard to get into. It's not easy, but you can do it if you work hard enough.”
Following your dreams can seem daunting, but sometimes, you just need to take a leap of faith and fly high.
“When I started, I didn't know where this career was gonna take me," Bickford said. "But I knew I just loved flying, and I loved airplanes.”