Sherry Sanders spent years gripping the armrests in terror during every flight, haunted by the sounds and sensations of air travel, but a fateful encounter with an unacquainted pilot seatmate changed the course of her life forever.

"Having sensed my anxious state, he proceeded to explain all the sounds the aircraft rumbled out, from the wings flapping to the landing gears dropping," she recalls. Her lifelong phobia began to subside, replaced by a newfound curiosity, and even prompted her to attend aeronautical school.

Sherry later pursued a master's degree in business, cultivating a passion for organisational development and working with people. It was only natural, then, that she would find her way to HAECO, where she now serves as HR Manager for HAECO Global Engine Support (GES) in Dallas. 

"You need to have adaptability and flexibility in this dynamic landscape," she says of the highly regulated aviation industry dependent on a skilled labour force. "It's been a learning journey, and it never stops."

Devoted in shaping the culture at HAECO GES, Sherry works closely with the Amsterdam, Hong Kong and London teams to help define policies, fostering effective employee relations, reducing turnover, and guiding management through conflict resolution and disciplinary processes.

"Since I came on board, we started attending the woman in aviation conference every year," she says proudly. The initiative proved successful as an empowering and team bonding experience, coupled with her dedication to dissolving layers between different positions. “You want to open up the communication in a way where you can go to anyone and ask anything, and we’ve done that here at HAECO.”

Beyond her professional achievements, Sherry is a true renaissance woman. She speaks fluent Italian after living in Italy for four years and frequents sports games with her husband to the likes of the Chicago's Cubs and Blackhawks. 

Her advice to young aviators? "Be a sponge," and soak up the wisdom of industry veterans. "They've seen and done everything, and yet they're still open to learning new things," Sanders says.