We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Catherine Weber. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Catherine below.

Catherine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Often outsiders look at a successful business and think it became a success overnight. Even media and especially movies love to gloss over nitty, gritty details that went into that middle phase of your business – after you started but before you got to where you are today. In our experience, overnight success is usually the result of years of hard work laying the foundation for success, but unfortunately, it’s exactly this part of the story that most of the media ignores. Can you talk to us about your scaling up story – what are some of the nitty, gritty details folks should know about?

Silverhawk Aviation Academy was a concept created with a partner almost three decades ago. We started the company in October 1998 with one leased helicopter and one student. During the early years of the flight academy, I was a single mom to four active children. In my mind, the company had to work; failure wasn’t an option. So, the sleepless nights, long days, and continuous balancing act were necessary to give my children the life I wanted them to have.

Silverhawk Aviation Academy was a family business from the start. My kids would help clean, answer the phones, make posters… whatever they could safely do, they did.

I worked with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) so veterans could use their benefits toward helicopter flight training. Slowly, we began to grow. I was able to buy one helicopter, then two. We moved into a larger facility and hired more instructors to teach. We continued to attend community events, career fairs, and aviation gatherings with the hopes that we would reach one more person.

During the Great Recession, I was forced to look outside the box. I received the required certification to accept international students and we began this new chapter. This was rewarding. Not only were we able to serve our veterans, but we were able to meet individuals from around the world.

We rebranded, our website received a complete overhaul, and I hired a cleaner! I could finally put time towards other projects. A few months later, I hired a receptionist! My children continued to help in many ways. They saw and felt the positive changes, which made the wins even greater.

In 2017 we bought an airplane and began teaching aspiring fixed wing pilots how to fly. Today, we have 100s of airplane and helicopter students, a campus in Caldwell, Idaho, and Ontario, Oregon, and we offer helicopter charter flights and scenic tours.

Countless people have guided me throughout my years. My knowledgeable parents, fellow entrepreneurs, aviation enthusiasts, and God helped me get to where we are today. Our Silverhawk family has grown. Our table continues to lengthen—I couldn’t be more grateful to invite more individuals to take a seat to join us on this wild ride.

Catherine, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m Catherine Rad Weber, owner, and operator of Silverhawk Aviation Academy since 1998. I was born and raised in Cottonwood, Idaho, then moved to California, Washington, and finally back to Idaho. I have four children, two sons, two daughters (they both work at Silverhawk), and a wonderful husband.

My mission is to make Silverhawk one of the best FAA Part 141 schools in the country. We offer quality training at a competitive cost in a great environment.

Our focus is not to become the biggest flight school, but rather one that provides quality training consistently. We not only want to help our students achieve their goals, but we also want them to be safe and successful pilots.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

The Great Recession – I talked about it briefly earlier. This was a year of pivot. We had to brainstorm and dive into a new area. This led us to a program for international students. In turn, this has introduced us to men and women from Belgium, Namibia, Australia, Japan, and many other countries.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Starting a business is terrifying. Seeing it through is tough. It was an “all hands on deck” decision as a family. Thankfully, I love what I do and the people I get to do it with. As an entrepreneur, stressful moments are inevitable. I can’t think of one story, but many. There were many nights I had to lean on my friends and family to drive my children to a function. I missed events because a deadline was coming up and I didn’t have time to see to it until Friday at 7:00 p.m. When you start a company, you sign up for this. And when you see the success, like a student passing a check ride, it feels incredible knowing you had a lot to do with it. I love Silverhawk and the family it has introduced me to.

Contact Info:

• Website: silverhawkaviation.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silverhawkaviation/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SilverhawkAviationAcademy