Future aviator chases altitude at flying school

An experience at a prestigious flying school was a leap towards a future in the skies for 17-year-old William Barry.
The Year 13 Hauraki Plains College student spent two weeks at the 58th Walsh Memorial Scout Flying School, from January 7-21.
There, he “lived in a tent while living the dream”: flying every day and winning a top award.
“The Walsh Memorial Scout Flying School is a very well-known camp in the aviation industry and is very hard to get into,” he explained, “with hundreds of New Zealanders from across [the country], and in some cases even Australia, applying to join.”
William said despite not being a scout, he was fortunate to be invited back to attend the school for a second time, after taking part in the 57th Walsh in 2024.
“Over the course of the two weeks, I flew a number of Cessna 152s and would fly anywhere from one to three times a day,” he said. “This, mixed with the January heat and intense studying, lead to a challenging but rewarding experience.”
By the end of his time at Walsh, William had flown more than 10 hours in a C-152 – a two-seater plane – navigated low flying, circuits, and even aerobatics, and won one of the top awards for the students, the RNZAF Immersion Award.
“As part of the award, I got to spend a week experiencing New Zealand Defence Force life. I got to stay at both Base Ohakea and Base Whenuapai.”
William lives in Ararimu, a small town south of Hunua, and said he was supposed to spend the first part of the week at Ohakea Air Force base, in the Manawatū.
So, he had “the awesome opportunity” to catch a flight in a new C-130J Hercules plane down to Ohakea – a highlight of his experience.
“We flew all around New Zealand, from Whenuapai, to Ohakea, to Wellington, to Christchurch, then back to Ohakea. The pilots and crew were amazing, giving me the opportunity to explore the plane, to constantly offering me food and drink, to allowing me to sit in the cockpit for most of the flight, to shouting Burger Fuel for lunch in Christchurch,” he said.
“The flight in the Herc was the coolest thing I have ever done that I will never forget.”
William’s introduction to aviation began at a young age.
His dad used to be a pilot, so William grew up around aircrafts and people in the industry.
“One of my earliest memories around aircraft was as a child visiting my dad at work and playing in the cockpit of a helicopter while he worked.”
He joined the Air Training Corps, and first got behind the controls of a plane when he was 13, on a night flight around Auckland city.
He flew solo for the first time at Walsh Memorial Scout Flying School last year.
“For as long as I can remember, all I have wanted to do was be a pilot in the Air Force. Whether it was from my father making me watch Top Gun at a young age, or whether I was born wanting it, all I have wanted to do was fly,” William said.
He told The Profile he has done everything he can to turn his dream into reality, and with his sights still set firmly on the skies, he shows no signs of slowing down.