As a private pilot who is passionate about general aviation, and a teacher and educator, I am extremely interested in the relatively high number of neurodiverse individuals within the aviation community, particularly pilots. As someone who has worked with hundreds of neurodiverse children and adults, I am driven to dispel myths, change perceptions, increase understanding and flip societies thinking and atitiudes towards neurodiversity.
So what does being neurodiverse mean? In one sense, it could be true to say that we are all neurodiverse to some degree, as no two brains are exactly the same (you’d hope not, that would be creepy!). However, the term neurodiversity is generally used to refer to individuals whose brains are ‘wired differently’ to what might be considered ‘the norm,’ (if there is such a thing.) For example, neurodiversity might include those with dyslexia, ADHD, and those on the autism spectrum, among others.*
I am a Neurodiversity Education Specialist and have been a GA pilot for around six years, and
