[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-115754-en":3,"doc-seo-115754-105":30,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":92},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":11,"is_downloadable":11,"audit_status":11,"page_count":21,"language":22,"language_code":23,"site_id":24,"html_lang":23,"table_of_contents":25,"faqs":26,"seo_title":27,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":28,"read_time":29},115754,5909887254083,"Miles","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_276721f389ce27ea32af1340a28f341c",1,"Story & Novel","Take Flight - Incredible Stories of Australian Women Who Reach for the Sky","A collection of inspiring aviation stories from Australian women who pursue flight with courage and determination. Written, photographed, and edited by Kathy Mexted, the book follows pilots and other aviators across powered and non-powered pursuits, from paramotors and helicopters to wingsuit BASE jumping, gliding, aerobatics, speed skydiving, and balloon flight. An introduction frames shared themes, including bravery, career pathways, and surprising personal narratives that broaden the meaning of flight beyond fixed-wing aircraft.","Take FLIGHT  \nKATHY MEXTED is a writer, photographer and editor. Inspired by her father, she learnt to fly in 1991, before she became a writer. Now she writes more than she flies, though her eyes and mind are usually turned skywards. She grew up in Finley, New South Wales. She married into, and then created, a flying family. She currently lives with her husband Denis on 40 hectares in Central Victoria, and they fly a Cessna 180. She is the author of Australian Women Pilots.  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \n‘Beautifully written, these captivating stories about women in flight will make you wish you had  \neven half their bravery and passion.’  \nLISA MILLAR, TV presenter  \n‘Who doesn’t need a little inspo in their lives? When women who choose to fly have their remarkable stories collated, prepare to have your own heart and mind soar!’CATRIONA ROWNTREE, TV presenter  \n‘Amazing flyers, amazing women, amazing lives. From flying with swans in the freezing skies over Europe to piloting choppers in the outback to – of all things – BASE jumping in the Himalayas, and many more. Kathy Mexted writes brilliantly, vividly, sometimes even breathlessly, bringing us this remarkable collection of stories of women who have chased down their lighter-than-air dreams. The  \nword ‘inspiring’ doesn’t even come close.’  \nMICHAEL VEITCH, author  \n‘Kathy Mexted captures beautiful insights into these normal yet audacious and courageous women and their breathtaking aviation adventures. I’m inspired.’LINDA BEILHARZ, Polar explorer and pilot  \n‘The writing and the stories are so good that the book itself deserves to take flight off the shelves.’  \nMICHAEL DILLON, filmmaker  \n‘Wonderful and diverse! Kathy Mexted’s passion, inquiry and talent has created a book that inspires  \nflight, energy and the desire to turn the page.’  \nAMANDA-LYN PEARSON, pilot, circus aerialist, creator and director of The Crackup Sisters  \n‘From free falling to paramotor and adrenaline-pumping aerobatics – a masterful recount of those  \nwho take flight.’  \nRYAN CAMPBELL, pilot  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nTake  \nFLIGHT  \nINCREDIBLE STORIES OF AUSTRALIAN WOMEN WHO REACH FOR THE SKY  \nKATHY MEXTED  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nUNSW Press acknowledges the Bedegal people, the Traditional Owners of the unceded territory on which the Randwick and Kensington campuses of UNSW are situated, and recognises the continuing connection to Country and culture. We pay our respects to Bedegal Elders past and present.  \nANewSouth book  \nPublished by  \nNewSouth Publishing  \nUniversity of New South Wales Press Ltd  \nUniversity of New South Wales Sydney NSW 2052  \nAUSTRALIA  \n[https://unsw.press/](https://unsw.press/)  \n© Kathy Mexted 2024 First published 2024  \n10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1  \nThis book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part of this book may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Inquiries should be addressed to the publisher.  \nISBN 9781742237619 (paperback)  \n9781742239088 (ebook)  \n9781761178054 (ePDF)  \nInternal design and illustrations Josephine Pajor-Markus Cover design Luke Causby  \nCover images Alida Soemawinata flying an AS350 Squirrel over Kata Tjuṯa by Natalie Luescher (front, upper); Heather Swan wearing her wingsuit by Graeme Murray (front, lower); Emma McDonald debuting her solo aerobatic display on the Gold Coast by Matt Hall Racing (back, left); Speed skydiver Jessica Johnston flying head down by Debbie Murphy (back, right)  \nPrinter Griffin Press  \nAll reasonable efforts were taken to obtain permission to use copyright material reproduced in this book, but in some cases copyright could not be traced. The author welcomes information in this regard.  \nThis book is printed on paper using fibre supplied from plantation or sustainably managed forests.  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nTo Denis, Harrison and Beth, Amelia and Kate.  \n[","cbCaigDeg8LEDCzf","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaigDeg8LEDCzf","pdf",13004008,5,256,"English","en",105,"# Introduction: A flying start\n## 1 The human swan: Sacha Dench, paramotor pilot\n## 2 From tourism to aeromedical rescue: Alida Soemawinata, helicopter pilot\n## 3 From the tallest mountain: Heather Swan, wingsuit BASE jumper\n## 4 Soaring to great heights: Catherine Conway, glider pilot\n## 5 Two crazy ideas: Stef Walter, wing walker and Moomba bird(wo)man\n## 6 On eagles’ wings: Kirsten Seeto, paraglider pilot\n## 7 On a roll: Emma McDonald, aerobatic pilot\n## 8 Head down, fast as you can: Jessica Johnston, speed skydiver\n## 9 It started with the stars: Krystal De Napoli, Gomeroi astrophysicist\n## 10 The earliest aviators: Donna Tasker, balloon pilot\n## Glossary\n## Sources\n## Acknowledgments","[{\"question\":\"What is the focus of Take Flight?\",\"answer\":\"Take Flight gathers remarkable stories of Australian women (and other aviators featured) who reach for the sky, spanning both powered and self-driven forms of flight and the careers built around them.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does the book include “other types of flight” beyond fixed-wing aviation?\",\"answer\":\"After Australian Women Pilots, the author was asked why she wrote mainly about fixed-wing flying. For Take Flight, she explores other flight types and the adventures connected to them.\"},{\"question\":\"What themes connect the different aviators in the book?\",\"answer\":\"Across varied pursuits, the stories share intersections in flight, including curiosity and courage—ranging from studying the stars and high-speed aerobatics to unconventional airborne disciplines.\"}]","Take Flight - Incredible Stories of Australian Women Who Reach for the Sky | PDF",1785476385,394,{"code":4,"msg":31,"data":32},"ok",{"site_id":24,"language":23,"slug":33,"title":13,"keywords":34,"description":14,"schema_data":35,"social_meta":87,"head_meta":89,"extra_data":91,"updated_unix":28},"take-flight-incredible-stories-of-australian-women-who-reach-for-the-sky","",{"@graph":36,"@context":86},[37,54,69],{"@type":38,"itemListElement":39},"BreadcrumbList",[40,44,48,51],{"item":41,"name":42,"@type":43,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":45,"name":46,"@type":43,"position":47},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":49,"name":12,"@type":43,"position":50},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/story-novel/",3,{"item":52,"name":13,"@type":43,"position":53},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/take-flight-incredible-stories-of-australian-women-who-reach-for-the-sky/115754/",4,{"url":52,"name":13,"@type":55,"author":56,"headline":13,"publisher":58,"fileFormat":61,"inLanguage":23,"description":14,"dateModified":62,"datePublished":63,"encodingFormat":61,"isAccessibleForFree":64,"interactionStatistic":65},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":57},"Person",{"url":41,"name":59,"@type":60},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-08-22","2026-07-31",true,{"@type":66,"interactionType":67,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":68},"ViewAction",{"@type":70,"mainEntity":71},"FAQPage",[72,78,82],{"name":73,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":75},"What is the focus of Take Flight?","Question",{"text":76,"@type":77},"Take Flight gathers remarkable stories of Australian women (and other aviators featured) who reach for the sky, spanning both powered and self-driven forms of flight and the careers built around them.","Answer",{"name":79,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":80},"Why does the book include “other types of flight” beyond fixed-wing aviation?",{"text":81,"@type":77},"After Australian Women Pilots, the author was asked why she wrote mainly about fixed-wing flying. 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