A Brother’s Story

From the time he was a child, my brother wanted to be a pilot.

He had a bomber jacket he loved to wear, and in kindergarten he would tell his teacher he wanted to fly. Years later, after he became a helicopter pilot, he made a trip home and went back to that same school. He proudly told his former kindergarten teacher that he had, in fact, become a pilot.

My brother was smart, thoughtful, and determined. He never did anything halfway.

When he chose to go to flight school, he excelled. He quickly made a name for himself in the helicopter world and advanced his career. His coworkers described him as professional, exceptionally capable, with no ego, always building up those around him. He was admired for his humility, maturity, and professionalism.

When COVID hit, he was working in a remote area of the United States doing search and rescue. The isolation that came with that role during lockdown was hard for him, and his mental health began to be impacted.

He eventually transitioned to a job where he could be back home and less isolated, but it wasn’t enough. Over the next few years, he faced personal challenges that became overwhelming.

He had the support of colleagues, friends, and family who cared about him. But what he needed was professional mental health care.

He was encouraged to seek help. Often.

But his perspective was that he would lose the ability to fly if he did, and for him that was not an option.

In October 2025, my brother died by suicide.

He was admired in his work, loved and supported by family and friends. But when someone is in a mental health crisis, perception becomes distorted, and love and support alone cannot replace professional care.

My family lost a beloved brother, son, and uncle. The aviation community lost a truly phenomenal pilot.

My hope in sharing his story is to bring awareness to the burden we place on pilots and air traffic controllers when we create barriers to accessing mental health care.

I hope no other family has to experience the kind of grief that comes from losing someone this way.

I believe we can change the system to better support aviation professionals and prevent future tragedies.

There is a quiet but profound truth in aviation: much of its safety system has been built in response to loss.

Major change often only follows major tragedy.

But individual loss is not always visible in the same way. It is less conspicuous. It is more private. It does not always trigger the same urgency.

At the Pilot Mental Health Campaign, we believe one life lost is too many.

One loss is enough to justify change.

No person should never have to choose between seeking help and continuing to live the life they worked for.

Stories like this are why we continue this work.

If you would like to support efforts to improve mental health care access and reduce stigma in aviation, you can learn more here: https://www.pmhc.org/donate