From the Cockpit

Living Ones Dream in Aviation While Inspiring Others

July 16, 2010

Have you ever wondered who is the face or shall we say the driving force behind the California Capital Airshow?  Who is it that pulls this massive event together so that we, the public, get to sit back and enjoy the wonders in the sky and on the ground?  Meet Darcy Brewer, the executive director of the California Capital Airshow. Though she stands only five-foot-four, she is a perfect example of small things containing big surprises. Always on the go and eager to share her passion of aviation with people of all ages and anyone who will listen, Darcy has a love of flying and a level of enthusiasm that is contagious.

Like me you’re probably wondering how she became the executive director of the Airshow. Darcy fell in love with aviation at the age of 17. One day as she and some friends were crossing the border from Mexico in a shiny, comfortable King Air 200, her flying mentor, long noticing her never-ending grin from the right seat, turned and said, “You should go tomorrow and get your pilot’s license.”  He said it as if one could simply drop by your favorite convenience store and pick one up.  Darcy quickly realized that it wasn’t quite that easy; however, that was Darcy’s ‘Ah Ha!’ moment and the beginning of her lifelong adventure in aviation.

So Darcy trotted down to her local flight training center the next day and that’s when the adventure began. It turns out that a pilot’s license is not so easily earned and primary training took place in aircraft far different than the beautiful King Air where she had spent so much time. She started her training in a yellow 1964 Piper Cherokee 140 — with a hand brake, but it didn’t take long for her to quickly jump in to whatever aircraft was available and safe to fly. She didn’t care what she flew or where, all aircraft and all destinations were fabulous. She flew for the adventure, the new people to meet and the stories to share.

As a busy special events manager in Los Angeles for almost two decades, flying became her therapy; her escape from a hectic, high-pressure career. Darcy commented often on how clean and quiet the world looks from 3,500 feet. When her parents retired from the Bay area and moved to the foothills of Northern California, she couldn’t wait to follow and find simple, more peaceful days. Below the snow and above the fog, she eventually found a small airport where a large group of warm, wonderful, aviators (spanning four generations) would hangar fly, organize fly-outs, and enjoy pancakes together mid-field every week. Saturday’s are spent judging whose warbird is shinier and how many bi-planes can fill the parking area in front of Wings restaurant at one time. Darcy was pleased; she was no longer sitting on the 405 freeway in LA and was the proud owner of her first airplane. Living and flying here was a dream come true, but of course sitting still isn’t in Darcy’s nature and so the next adventure began…

The opportunity to interview for the position of Executive Director for the California Capital Airshow “came out of nowhere” as Darcy commonly puts it. She was nominated for the position and won.  She hit the ground running and hasn’t looked back since!

As we all know, the Airshow is a huge event and Darcy is quick to point out that she can’t and doesn’t do it alone.  She has a working Board of Directors supporting her every step of the way and an army of volunteers (over 1,000) that Darcy adores and thinks of as family.  When talking to Darcy about the planning of the show, she makes it sound simple, as if she is just having 100,000 friends over for lunch…but we all know better.

The California Capital Airshow is the exact opportunity that Darcy’s been seeking to help spread the word and share the excitement of aviation on a grand scale. She doesn’t expect everyone to ‘drink the ‘kool aid’; she just wants them to look up in awe or maybe take a moment to stop and shake the hand of one of our troops. Even though the Airshow takes every day of a full year to plan, you can still find her sneaking away every once in a while to some remote airstrip in a 1939 Piper Cub to sit under a tree and read the latest flying adventure novel.

What inspires you?  We’d love to hear your stories of inspiration.