Aged just 23, Jenna Achtzehn, a Cirrus Aircraft delivery pilot, became the world’s youngest female Vision Jet type-rated pilot. She reveals how she made the leap from piston to jet engine
Yayeri van Baarsen
3 February 2023
The course was really well thought out, with one week of groundschool and one week of flight training.
The groundschool was a good follow-up on the training videos I had already watched as it went more in-depth, and in the last part of the week, they introduced the stationary simulator.
All the instructors on the course were awesome and very knowledgeable. They had a background in different jet types, which meant they could relate the Vision Jet’s systems to, for example, an airliner’s systems.
Half of my flight training time I did in the full motion sim and the other half I did in the actual aircraft. Being able to train in the actual aircraft was very cool.
On the first day of my in-jet training, we flew from Knoxville, Tennessee, to Nashville, Tennessee, and went over to some busy airspace.
Later in the week, we flew down to north of Atlanta, Georgia, where we performed an arrivals procedure into a crowded airport.
Being able to train with ATC and have the experience of flying the jet in busy airspace in the real world was great practice.
For me, the hardest part was time management. There’s so much information to take in and lots of material to go over in those two weeks.
However, you can’t focus full-on around the clock. I had to make sure to use my time appropriately, which meant finding enough time for study, but also taking some time for myself to relax and unwind.
Being larger and heavier than the SR series, the SF is a bit heavier on the controls, but overall, it’s easy to handle.
The engine and airframe are, of course, different, but the avionics are similar. Being already familiar with the Garmin avionics from flying the SR series made the transition relatively easy for me.
Also, I’ve been a passenger in the Vision Jet before and working at Cirrus Aircraft, I’ve been around my colleagues working on the jet.
So, although it’s a new aircraft as far as the flying part goes, it wasn’t a completely new thing to me since I already had some prior knowledge.
There’s a lot of systems in the jet and even though they’re in different places, knowing how and where to find for example the in-flight weather in the SR, helped a lot with finding it in the Vision Jet.
Yes, I did, in the full motion sim. During sim training I was given an engine fire at 16,000ft and had to figure out what to do and how to handle it.
I decided to use the CAPS and after I pulled, the instructor let us float all the way down to the ground. Although it was ‘only’ a simulation, it felt very realistic.
Having gone through the entire process in the sim, I now feel prepared in case I’ll ever need to use the CAPS in a real flight.
Since March 2022, I’ve been doing SR deliveries, flying the SR20, SR22 and SR22 Turbocharged. Having completed my Vision Jet type rating a few weeks ago, I’ll do a bit more training to get up to speed and will then jump into Vision Jet deliveries as well.
As a delivery pilot, I check the aircraft and present it to the customer. I show them the logbooks and go over everything in the walk-around.
We then fly the acceptance flight together before I hand them over to their instructors. Some owners are completely new to flying and have bought the aircraft to train in, for others it’s their fifth aircraft and they already have thousands of flying hours in a Cirrus.
That’s why I always tailor the acceptance flight to the customer’s background, needs and experience level.
Presenting the aircraft. I get to show it off in all its glory, which is just great! Every customer’s most favourite part is throttling up… Moving that throttle all the way forward, feeling the power and getting pushed back into their seat on the very first flight in their own new aircraft – it always creates a big smile.
I’ve done more than 70 deliveries by now, but it never gets old! The first sight of their customised aircraft standing there in the hangar feels like Christmas morning for the clients.
For many customers it’s their first aircraft, so it’s a very big milestone and they’re incredibly excited. Being a part of that excitement and sharing this moment with them makes this job very special.
Back in 2021, a friend of mine did some training in his Cirrus aircraft and I was able to ride along. We were given a tour of the Knoxville Vision Center Campus and I was blown away by the state-of-the-art facility. Everyone was so friendly – I just knew this was the place I wanted to work.
To get my foot in the door, I started working in the Cirrus Store and joined the employee Flying Club. Then after about half a year, when the opportunity arose, I accepted the delivery pilot position.
My advice to other pilots aiming for a career in aviation would be that whenever you’re given an opportunity, run with it. Grab it with both hands and try your best.
This has certainly worked out well for me: I started selling Cirrus merchandise, and now I’m flying the jet!
Nobody in my family was into aviation. My interest in flying started in middle school when I was about 14 years old.
We lived 10 minutes from the local airport in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, which had mainly small piston engine traffic. However, once a week, this giant airliner came in, and on its approach, it’d fly right over our house.
Curious about this big aeroplane, I asked my mum to drive me to the airport. I spent lots of summer afternoons hanging out there – watching, wondering, and eventually asking the local flight school how I could go from looking at aircraft to flying them.
A month after I graduated from high school, I obtained my PPL. Currently, I have about 1,100 hours of flight time logged with 400-500 in Cirrus aircraft, specifically.
Although I’m biased, I can honestly say that my favourite aircraft is the Vision Jet. Starting out in pistons and then being able to step up and make the leap to a jet, which allows you to fly faster and higher, is amazing.
Seeing as the Vision is my first jet type rating, it makes this aircraft special to me. I love that I can be up there at 31,000ft, flying around with airliners that hold 200 or 300 people, while I’m all by myself in the SF50.
Having a pilot licence enables you to travel in a different way. I love flying over water and beachy environments, seeing all that blue glistening below.
A couple of weeks ago, I went flying for fun in the Bahamas and Florida Keys where I got to watch dolphins and whales from the sky.
It was really cool to combine my favourite aircraft and favourite place by taking the Vision Jet to the Bahamas!
I definitely see myself staying at Cirrus Aircraft, as they have lots of opportunities for growth. There’s flying involved in many different departments of the company, for example in filming the training videos. To me personally, my family and home life is very important.
A career in aviation is often one where you spend a lot of time away from your family, but working here in Knoxville, I’m home most nights. I want to start a family someday and at Cirrus I feel I’m able to combine the two – developing my career in aviation as well as having a home life.
As for what I’d see myself doing in 10 years’ time…? I don’t have my eye set on a particular position in the company, instead, I’ll see how things work out and where I’ll end up.
My goal was getting type-rated in the Vision Jet. Now I have this rating, it’s all about building up my flight hours and gaining jet experience.
At Cirrus, we deliver aircraft all over the world. Up until now, I’ve only ferried aircraft domestically, here in Tennessee, as well as over to California, Florida, and New York.
It’d be very cool to also do this internationally, I’d love to eventually ferry the jet across the Atlantic Ocean. Flying over those miles and miles of open water in the SF50 would be amazing!
