Amy’s love for flying began when she was 5 years old. Her family and she were moving from Korea to the States. She remembers seeing a very large plane with a Tiger emblem and thought “Wow this beast is taking us to our new home.” Amy was overwhelmed with excitement and knew from then that she wanted to fly airplanes. Since no one she knew had a background in aviation, her mother encouraged her to look into the flight program at The College of Aeronautics in Queens, NY. Soon after, she enrolled. Earning her flight ratings was definitely not an easy task since she was a full-time student and had to honor her familial duties. Funds for flying always seemed to be scarce but she was fortunate enough to land an internship at Federal Express, which eventually led to a full-time paid position as a flight coordinator. That position opened doors for her to meet many great pilots and enabled Amy to fund her flying lessons. There were many turbulent times where she was unable to afford taking flying lessons but she also had many inspiring moments where some pilots who believed in her dreams of becoming an airline pilot, directly assisted her in completing her flight ratings. She vowed that she would always extend the grace that was bestowed upon me to others in their time of need, by paying it forward. Upon graduation, she flight instructed and then got hired on with a regional airline. Then 9/11 occurred and there was a huge downturn in the industry, where she was furloughed along with many other pilots. During this trying time, she remembered her mother always telling her to look for opportunities where others may not. With that in mind, she stumbled upon a charter company that she was not familiar with called Sky King. This company ended up being one of the biggest blessings in disguise because it allowed her to fly internationally to Cuba, Guam, Hong Kong, and South & Central America. With those experiences under her belt, she was able to upgrade there as a B737 Captain. Later on, Sky King began facing financial hardships and had to file bankruptcy and downsize. A few of her colleagues mentioned that there was a company in Thailand that was hiring pilots. Amy took another leap of faith and moved to Thailand where she gained invaluable experience flying overseas. After her contract was over, she was hired back here in the States with jetBlue where she flew the E190 and A320. With a few more years, her dreams of getting to fly for a legacy carrier came true when she was hired by American Airlines. At American Airlines, she has had the opportunity to fly the B767 to Europe and currently is back flying the B737, based in NY. Amy’s career path definitely hasn’t been linear and has had bumps and detours. With all of that, becoming a pilot, was the best decision she ever made. Each turn brought new experiences, which led her to where she is today. She is honored to be a board member of Asian Women in Aerospace and Aviation because she believe there needs to be more AAPI women in aviation.