Erica was born and raised in a small town along the south shore of Lake Superior.  Her father made EAA Oshkosh Fly-In their family vacation every year since 1979.  She is the first aerobatic pilot in the family and a third generation pilot.  Erica got her first taste of flight in the Taylorcraft owned by her father and grandfather, parking the airplane in a farmer’s field in the summer and in their Wisconsin backyard on skis in the winter.  When she was young a math teacher was an inspiration, advising her to find something she would like to do for free on a Saturday afternoon.  Make into a career, and it will not be a job.  Aviation fit that desire.

At EAA Oshkosh she and her two sisters would use the bed of the family truck as a platform to watch the airshow each day, tuning the radio to hear the announcer.  “When I was very young, I knew I had to fly aerobatics after watching the Christen Eagles perform.  They were my favorite, all three flying aerobatics together in the beautiful biplanes.”  Her grandparents volunteered at EAA Oshkosh for as many as fifteen years.  Without EAA Oshkosh, she doesn’t know when she would have discovered the craving for aerobatics. 

Erica is a certified flight instructor for glider, instrument and multi-engine airplanes.  She is a seaplane pilot, and has taught aerobatics, tailwheel, towed gliders.  She is airline transport pilot (ATP) rated flying over 7,000 hours.  She enjoys flying close formation after a good brief because it requires intense concentration, trust of the pilots you are flying with, and awareness of your own personal skills.

Erica is a graduate from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach Florida.  In 1997 she earned her undergraduate degree in three and a half years, while also interning with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), and at USAir in their flight safety department.  She graduated with distinction from Embry-Riddle with a Masters Degree in Aeronautical Science in 1999 and a grade point average of 4.0.  In college she was a member of the Rowing Club in an eight man boat her first year, and the girl’s four place boat for two years.

When she was half way through her masters in early 1999, she wanted to join the new Embry-Riddle Sport Aviation Club.  The Club had just acquired a partially-donated Pitts S2B N260AB, a factory built two seat aircraft from the widow of Randy Gange, a well-liked aerobatic pilot and instructor.  Erica had been dating a guy in college who discouraged her from joining, and told her it was a waste of time, that the Club wouldn’t let her fly the Pitts by herself.  She told him that she never expected to fly it herself, as it did have two seats!  A few days later, he went away to an internship; she joined the Club, gained the use of an extraordinary airplane, and got rid of that boyfriend.  She started taking lessons in the Pitts S2B and began competing in International Aerobatic Competitions (IAC) in Florida.  She flew her first competition after 3 flights in the Pitts with 2 1/2 hours of aerobatic time in her logbook.  She didn’t place in the top three, but didn’t place at the bottom, either!  Since then, she has competed at IAC competitions in a Clipped-Wing Cub, Pitts S2B, Pitts S1T, and her current Pitts S2S.

For a number of years, Erica worked as a flight instructor for Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach, and taught upset attitude recovery and competition aerobatics in the Pitts S2B that taught her.  During the summer of 2001 she went to Harris Hill, New York, and at Schweizer’s Soaring School in Elmira.  She towed gliders with a Super Cub and Pawnee, and also earned her glider commercial and glider CFI between May and July.  There, she had her youngest student, a boy who she soloed at age 14, and her oldest, a gentleman who was taking lessons at the age of 86.  That summer she also earned a Sliver Badge from the Soaring Society of America by keeping the glider aloft over five hours, flying 32 miles, and climbing 3,300 feet. 
In 2004 Erica attended the Reno National Air Races to watch a friend, Gene McNeely race his T-6.  She saw all the airplanes fly, but her favorite were the bi-planes and formula ones.  They looked quick, small, and she saw passing!  She decided the next time she went back, it would be with an airplane to race.  In March 2006 she bought a Pitts S1 to bring to Reno.  It was a good little airplane, but her heart was just not into the pretty little blue Pitts with no battery, alternator, or permanent radio.  She named it Bittersweet #9.  With the help of Paul Lopez and other pilots and mechanics at Spruce Creek, she got it ready for Reno.  Bittersweet qualified second to last, which placed Erica beginning the 2006 race 6 out of 8 in the bi-plane bronze class.  In the 3 races for her race class, she finished by moving up to 4th out of 8!  Erica recently sold the Pitts S1 after purchasing a Pitts S2S.  The blue S1 was a good little airplane for aerobatics, but it was a very slow Pitts with clipped Sparcraft wings, four ailerons, and a climb prop.

In July 2006 Erica bought her dream aerobatic aircraft, a single seat Pitts S2S.  It is beautiful, bright red and carries energy better than any other Pitts she has flown.  She says the mechanic completing her pre-buy told her he liked the airplane but hated the color!  She was thinking to herself, “are you kidding me?!?!  I love it, this is going to be mine for a very long time!  This is my color, and you’ll know who is flying it!”  She is still learning how to fly this airplane well, and how not to fly it like an S1T in which she has had most of her competition flights.  Erica plans on flying a number of IAC competitions in Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, Vermont, Illinois and Texas.  This summer she will work towards her low level airshow waiver, and use her vacation to attend the U.S. National Aerobatic Competition in Texas!

Erica currently is a Captain at CitationShares, a Fractional Ownership Management Company.  Flying the Citation jet is luxurious, but she says it is no match for the fun, loud, hot-in-the-summer, cold-in-the-winter, small airplane like the Pitts!

Onward and Upward!

 
Ratings / Honors

Airline Transport Pilot
Certified Flight Instructor: Airplane Single Engine Land, Multi Engine Land, Instrument, and Glider
Upset Attitude Recovery / Competition Aerobatics Instructor
Private Pilot: Airplane Single Engine Sea
Type Rated: Citation Excel, CJ1 and Beech 1900
Reno National Air Race Bi-Plane Class Card Holder
Silver Badge: Soaring Society of America (SSA)
Instructor of the Month Award – Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, October 2001
John Philips Sousa music award for excellence
Plays 5 different musical instruments, flute is most special.
Piloted 68 different aircraft types, 5 of which were flown solo for the first time.

Master of Aeronautical Science, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Florida, Graduated with Distinction GPA 4.0 December 1999

Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Studies; Minors: Aviation Safety with Investigation Concentration, Air Traffic Control, Aviation Business Administration; Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Florida December 1997