Episode 315 - Literary Aviatrix: Liz Booker's Voyage Beyond the Pen Part 2

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor magazine.

Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!

In today’s episode, we’re joined by an incredible guest—Liz Booker, also known as The Literary Aviatrix. Liz’s story is one of true grit, service, and inspiration. She dropped out of high school and enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard, beginning her journey as a deck hand before moving on to become a navigator, and later earning her commission through Officer Candidate School.

Liz went on to serve as a Coast Guard pilot flying the H-65 Dolphin and completed an extraordinary 28-year career, retiring at the rank of Commander (O-6). Along the way, she earned her bachelor’s degree and not one but two master’s degrees—one of them from the prestigious Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

What began as a hobby—the Aviatrix Book Club—has since grown into a thriving community that celebrates women in aviation and storytelling. Liz’s mission to connect, inspire, and empower through literature has resonated across the aviation world.

We’re thrilled to have Liz with us to share her remarkable journey and the evolution of The Literary Aviatrix project.

Thank you to our sponsors HelliLadder, Metro Aviation and Night Flight Concepts.