From Passenger To Pilot: Local Teen Earns Two Aviation Certifications

LUSBY, Md. — Most teens wouldn’t spend their precious weekends suspended in the sky with their dads in a single-engine aircraft. But over the past two and a half years, Elijah “Eli” Barrett and his dad, Chris, logged over 200 hours of flight time together.

Seventeen-year-old Eli Barrett recently earned both his private pilot certificate and instrument rating, completing the two certifications together while still attending Patuxent High School. Aside from Eli Barrett’s age, completing the two certifications together is a rare achievement; most pilots earn their instrument rating months or years after obtaining their private pilot certificate. Seventeen is the minimum age at which a person can earn a private pilot’s license.

“It was a long journey, and I couldn’t be prouder of his perseverance. I’ve been flying for more than 30 years and have known more than a few pilots, but I’ve never met anyone besides Eli who took on both certifications together. Being his instructor through it all has been one of the greatest blessings of my life,” Chris Barrett wrote in an email to The BayNet.

Eli Barrett completed his early flight training in a 1946 Piper Cub taildragger and later did his instrument training in a Cessna 172 through the Civil Air Patrol. Eli Barrett and his father are both involved with the Civil Air Patrol, where the younger Barrett serves as captain of the nationally competitive AS4STEM drone team.

Chris Barrett works as a part-time professional pilot and flight instructor and said his son has been flying with him his whole life and first expressed interest in training to get his pilot’s certification around age 14. They began training together the following year and flew together at least once a week.

Despite his young age, this certification will open up more opportunities in aviation for Eli Barrett; with this certification under his belt, he can begin working on his commercial pilot’s license, which he will be eligible for at 18. He also hopes to become a flight instructor and mission pilot for the Civil Air Patrol, where he’ll teach others how to fly and work on search and rescue and disaster recovery missions.

“We received a lot of wisdom from others about teaching your own child to fly. We heard lots of stories about parents and kids having bad experiences, but for us, it was one of the greatest experiences we got to have as father and son,” Chris Barrett said.

Outside of aviation, Eli Barrett enjoys listening to Johnny Cash, playing pickleball, spending time with friends and playing video games. He currently works as a lifeguard and said he’s still deciding between careers in aviation or engineering. But either way, he knows whatever he chooses will build on his passion for understanding how things work and tackling complex challenges.

“I feel like everything I’ve been working towards has finally paid off,” Eli Barrett said. “I’m glad I had such a great mentor and flight instructor.” 

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