For most teenagers playing flight simulators, the cockpit experience ends when the game powers down. For Pivot North Bay Senior Bryce O’Neal, beating levels in Ace Combat 7 only sparked a bigger question: What does it actually feel like to fly?
That curiosity led him off the chair and straight to North Coast Air at the Santa Rosa airport, where he traded simulated flights for real cockpit controls. Today, Bryce is actively working toward his private pilot’s license, logging regular flight hours in a Cessna 172 — his go-to aircraft for its steady reliability and handling.
Up in the air, the payoff was immediate.
“There are many parts of flying I love,” said Bryce. “The scenery is incredibly beautiful. You can see so much from above that you never get to see from anywhere else. Nothing beats the plane’s eye view! Santa Rosa is beautiful from way up high.”
Getting into the sky, however, required mastering challenges far less cinematic than video games. Ground school meant tackling hefty subjects like aerodynamics, navigation, and aircraft systems before ever leaving the tarmac. Juggling traditional high school coursework alongside intense flight prep was a steep climb at first, but Pivot’s flexible program gave Bryce the freedom to build a custom schedule that keeps both his diploma and his flight goals on track.
Now, Bryce is focused on his next major milestones: passing the FAA written exam and completing five hours of cross-country solo flight time. Every hour of preparation brings him one step closer to hearing his favorite words through the headset:
“Cleared for takeoff.”
