Rachelle Spector — Founder, I HART Flying

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📝 Summary

In this episode, Shawn sits down with Rachelle Spector, founder of I HART Flying, a nonprofit scholarship organization dedicated to helping women advance, complete, and lead in aviation careers. Rachelle shares how a random Facebook message from a flight instructor in 2017 led to her first flight — and, less than a year later, to the launch of I HART Flying. Nearly ten years and almost half a million dollars in flight training support later, the organization has funded close to 50 HARTFlying scholars with a 98% completion and advancement rate. Rachelle walks through the “HARTLed” approach that sets I HART Flying apart — a completion model built on mentorship, industry connections, and ongoing support rather than a one-time check — and talks candidly about the workforce shortage driving demand for pilots and aircraft maintenance technicians industry-wide. The conversation also covers building a leadership team, the growing “HartNation” community, advice for young women entering aviation, and what keeps Rachelle up at night as the organization scales toward its ten-year milestone. The episode closes with a lighter round covering favorite in-flight snacks, dream aircraft (the F-22), and a dream co-pilot (John Travolta).

✨ Key Points

  • The origin story: Rachelle never planned to be a pilot. A flight instructor cold-messaged her on Facebook in August 2017 offering a free flight — she said yes, assuming he was joking, and has been flying ever since.
  • From idea to nonprofit in weeks: After pitching her “I HART Flying” concept to EAA at AirVenture in July 2017, Rachelle filed her 501(c)(3) and received her IRS letter of determination in about six weeks, awarding the first scholarship that December.
  • Impact by the numbers: Nearly 50 HARTFlying scholars, almost $500,000 in flight training support, a 98% completion/advancement rate, and roughly 250 qualified applications in a recent three-week cycle.
  • The HARTLed model: A completion-focused approach — advance, complete, lead — built around mentorship, strategic guidance, industry connections, and support before, during, and years after a scholarship, aimed at closing funding and continuity gaps rather than just cutting a check.
  • The workforce gap: Women make up just 5.5% of the global pilot population and 2.9% of aircraft maintenance technicians; Boeing projects a need for over 700,000 new pilots in the next two decades, alongside a 30,000+ worker shortage in aircraft maintenance.
  • HARTNation: More than an organization, Rachelle describes I HART Flying as a community — scholars, applicants, mentors, and supporters (including men) all championing one another, with new efforts underway like a “day in the life” social series to spotlight more journeys, not just winners.
  • Leadership and expansion: I HART Flying’s board and selection committee include former HARTFlying scholars and industry leaders, including a former scholar now serving as head of pilot hiring at Frontier Airlines. The organization is expanding beyond flight training ahead of a 2027 milestone.
  • Advice for the next generation: Rachelle’s core message — don’t let anyone tell you there’s something you can’t do, do the work, and follow what brings you joy.

⏱️ Timestamps

TimeSegment
00:00Welcome and introduction of guest Rachelle Spector
00:38Rachelle’s origin story — the 2017 Facebook message and first flight
04:15Founding I HART Flying — the EAA AirVenture pitch and rapid nonprofit launch
07:39Building the leadership team and early impact numbers
11:45“It’s not a capability problem, it’s a continuity problem” — introducing the HARTLed model
12:28The HARTLed model explained — selection process and scholarship cycles
21:10HARTNation — community, mentorship, and supporting non-winners
29:26The future of aviation — pilot shortage numbers and industry opportunity
32:35What keeps Rachelle up at night — fundraising, growth, and resilience
34:40Lightning round — favorite snacks, dream aircraft, and dream co-pilot

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