A former vet is proving the sky’s the limit after a surprising career change in her 30s left her proudly living life with her head in the clouds.

Born in England and raised between Australia, Scotland and the United States, Naomi Hepworth, 35, spent much of her childhood travelling by plane as her family moved around the world.

While she always loved flying, she never imagined it would one day become her career.

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Working in hospitality and as a veterinary assistant, Hepworth said she spent most of her 20s feeling “lost”.

That is until she took a leap of faith in 2021, at the age of 31, that changed the course of her life.

“I tried vet school, I tried being a chef and nothing kind of clicked, it just didn’t feel right,” she said.

“And then all of a sudden I was like, I’m going to take a trial introductory flight.”

Hepworth said she had previously watched her brother study for his private pilot’s licence and was fascinated by the process.

“When he was studying it, I was always kind of interested,” she said.

“And then I took my first introductory flight, after just kind of being lost throughout my 20s.”

Naomi Hepworth, 35, became a pilot in her 30s after changing careers. Credit: Supplied

Hepworth said the experience was eye-opening and she knew instantly it was something she wanted to continue doing, even if it meant upending her life.

“I was instantly hooked. It was the best thing I’ve ever done,” she said.

“And I haven’t really regretted it since.”

After completing her training, Hepworth gained her pilot’s licence, but was faced with a new challenge: How to get work.

Although Australia’s aviation industry has continued to face major shortages of experienced pilots and instructors over the years, the entry-level market is heavily saturated and many pilots have to relocate for their first flying jobs.

“Just like a doctor would go to a hospital and implement whatever she or he has learned from medical school, out of flight school ... the hardest time for a pilot is getting their first flying job,” Hepworth said.

“Your job might be taxiing people in the Top End, or a lot of first-time pilots will go to Broome or Lake Eyre just to try to get their first job.”

Naomi Hepworth would like to see more women in Australia become pilots. Credit: Supplied

After months of persistence in the highly competitive industry, Hepworth ultimately landed a job as an flight instructor at Aero Hunter Flight Training in the NSW Upper Hunter.

Now she spends her days teaching future pilots while also working towards her Airline Transport Pilot Licence, the qualification required to fly for major airlines.

Hepworth said it was not easy changing careers in her 30s and still finds herself wishing sometimes she had discovered her passion for flying earlier.

“In the beginning I was like, ‘Oh, I wish I was 20, I wish I was 25. I wish I found flying when I was 18’, you know?” she said.

“But then that kind of just fades away and you just accept that you’re the age that you are, and you can’t really do much about it.”

Only 7per cent of pilots in Australia are women. Credit: Supplied

Her advice for others struggling with changing careers is not to see age as an impediment or as lost time.

“I think all your past experiences do come in use. It’s not like you start fresh and everything you’ve experienced in your life leading up to this moment has no use,” Hepworth said.

“Everything from your life is all part of the journey, it found you at the right time, you know, maybe you didn’t start it 10 years ago because you weren’t ready for it then.

“Flying found me when it did because I was ready for it. I guess that’s how I see it.”

Only 7 per cent of pilots in Australia are women and globally woman make up just 4 per cent of pilots, according to an Aviation Aerospace Australia report.

Hepworth said while she has seen a slight improvement in the gender divide at flight school, she would like to see even more women pursuing careers as pilots.

“It would be great to just to get more women in aviation,” she said.

“We are statistically better pilots, believe it or not! We have better cognitive judgment skills, we’re more cautious and we take less risks.”

A former female student of Hepworth’s is now finishing an aircraft engineering apprenticeship and has her sights set on becoming a commercial pilot, an accomplishment her teacher is extremely proud of.

“She’s just dedicated to progressing in her career and improving herself. It’s just great to see,” she said.

Hepworth said she will continue to support future pilots and promote aviation careers to women while she works towards her goals.

“(Flying) is the best thing I’ve ever done,” she said.