Senior Spotlight: Mahima Sachan

Is it easier to fly an airplane than it is to drive a car? 

Mahima Sachan says it is. 

For one, there’s no parallel parking when flying a plane, she says with a smile. And there’s a lot less traffic up in the air than there is down on the highways. But Sachan has always wanted to be an airline pilot. It’s what drew her to the Aviation Academy at Andrews, where she got the chance to start the first leg of her aviation journey.  

After finishing her high school requirements in her junior year, Sachan dually enrolled at GTCC-Jamestown to start taking college classes. She’ll enter Virginia Tech as a sophomore and plans to study aerospace engineering, while also becoming a pilot. 

“Flying a plane feels like stepping into a dream I never want to wake up from,” she says. “The moment the wheels lift up, it’s like everything inside me lifts too. It’s like all the weight I’ve been carrying stays behind. Whatever I’m afraid of, whatever’s been holding me back, I leave it on the runway. Up there, in the clouds, I feel like my true self…Free, calm and completely alive. The sky wraps around me like a secret that I get to be a part of. It reminds me that no matter what’s happening below, there’s always a way to rise above it.” 

Following Her Dream 

Sachan, who is from Jodhpur, India, moved to the U.S. during her final year of middle school. Her father, who came to the U.S. for a job, is the first person from their Indian village to leave the country.  

When it came to choosing a high school program, Sachan, who is an only child, was determined to attend Andrews. But her parents worried about her being alone at a new school. They had friends with children at other schools, closer to where they lived. They thought it might be easier for her to acclimate with more social support. Sachan insisted on the Aviation Academy at Andrews, even if it meant riding a bus for a total of four hours each day. Her father literally walked her into the school, holding her hand on the first day of school.  

“I don’t remember myself being scared,” she says. “If I was going to be scared and nervous, then who was going to support them? This was my dream come true.” 

For the first two years, she took two buses each day. She has written eloquently about the experience: 

“The cold morning air bites as I get off the bus, the hum of the engine still buzzing in my ears as I head toward school. I moved to the U.S. with nothing but a love for aviation and an unwavering determination to make it a reality. I watched the world blur past the window. The sound of the tires on the road became a rhythm, a constant reminder of the distance I had to travel, not just physically, but toward a dream that felt so distant.” 

She struggled sometimes. Although she learned English in India, it was difficult understanding American conversational English in a high school.  

“I did not understand the accents whatsoever,” she says. “I would just generate a pattern in my head, like the answer to the first question is ‘Yes,’ then ‘No,’ then ‘Yes’, ‘No,’ ‘Yes…’” 

Christopher Comer has taught aviation at Andrews for nine years, and says Sachan is one of the most driven students he’s ever had. Sometimes their class times could be long, but he tries to give his students a break to help them get through it. She stood out because she studied through their breaks. Even if their lesson was less pilot-focused and more maintenance-oriented, she didn’t waste a minute. 

“She didn’t want a break,” Comer says. “She would sit right there and she’d pull out piloting text books and study them.” 

Sachan was so zeroed in on her studies that she earned her high school credits in two years. If she had known she could take summer classes, she might have finished even earlier, she says. 

“I did not have many friends, I just stayed focused on my goals,” she says. 

The summer before her senior year, she attended a residential FAA program at Elizabeth City State University. It was her first time away from her parents and she had to beg them to let her go. 

“I had to wash the dishes for, like, the next three months,” she says with a laugh. 

Learning to Fly 

Everyone needs someone in their corner, and Sachan says Comer was that person for her. 

“He’s the best person I met in this country so far,” she says. “I didn’t know how stuff worked, but he and Mr. Myers (Andrews’ Aviation director) guided me through it all. They always had patience with me. I don’t think any other place would have been able to provide the patience and the courage that they provided to me.” 

While learning to fly was initially her focus, at Andrews, Sachan also learned the mechanics of a plane. The program includes units on engineering, piloting and mechanics. She learned how an engine works and how to repair it. 

Under Comer and Myers’ guidance, she achieved accolades. In 2022, she was Aviation Academy Student of the Year. She earned her UAS Technician certification with Civil Air Patrol and helped provide logistical support for response efforts during Hurricane Debby’s in 2024. She has made robotics and cybersecurity presentations at N.C. A&T and placed fourth in the Futuristic Airport Design competition at the Elizabeth City State University FAA Aviation Workforce Development Academy.   

Sachan actually flew a plane before learned to drive a car. She was much more nervous about driving a car, she says. Although, she learned that flying an airplane would also require more experience and time, she jokes that her father is much more comfortable with her flying planes than driving their car. 

Big Wins on the Ground 

While much of Sachan’s attention was up in the air, there were a few big wins down on the ground. In her junior year, she helped establish the first Women’s Varsity Golf Team

at Andrews. While there was a boys team, there wasn’t one for the girls. With just three months before the season started, Sachan decided to just try starting a team, even if no one joined her.  

“I had never played a sport, yet I found myself not just learning, but leading a team I had built from scratch,” she says. “The challenge was daunting, but I refused to let that hold me back.” 

She practiced relentlessly, determined to improve with every swing, each missed shot or adjustment. By the end of the season, she placed in the top 10 at the mid-state conference. If she has any regrets, it’s that she wishes she had started it sooner. 

“It taught me that leadership is not about being the best player; it’s about creating opportunities for others, even when the path ahead is uncertain.” 

Next Destination: Va. Tech 

While flying planes have put her in the pilot’s seat, Sachan wants to make her mark in other ways too. She wants to help build underground fueling systems to decrease wait times required for refueling planes. She aims to create ways to make flying more efficient and safer. Another area of aviation safety that she wants to improve is the number of bird strikes against airplanes. Bird strikes, or collisions between birds and planes, are common and can potentially lead to engine damage, delays or even crashes.  

Meanwhile, Sachan plans to continue flight training and obtaining a private pilot license. Her family will also move closer to Blacksburg, Va. before classes begin. With her time in the Triad winding down, Sachan credits the Aviation Academy at Andrews with providing the foundation for her future aviation career. 

“I found my wings at the Aviation Academy, where my passion for planes could finally take flight,” she says.