Despite the geographical distance coming from Canada, Jordan Farrar, EAA 1645318, met his friends Wyatt Drum, from North Carolina, and Cody Ferguson EAA 1647229, Spencer Phillips, and Nolan Elliott EAA 1640609, from Indiana, at Oshkosh after only knowing each other online playing video games. One of their early favorites was War Thunder, an aviation-based video game with a focus on combat flight simulation. This group formed a close-knit friendship through their shared interests in aviation and video games alike.
Jordan, Cody, and Wyatt are particularly passionate about aviation, and are all aspiring aircraft mechanics, while Spencer and Nolan are more casual enthusiasts.
Jordan had always been fascinated by aviation, a passion that began at a young age and was nurtured by his grandfather, a flight engineer. They spent countless Saturdays together at the Bomber Command Museum of Canada in Manton, Alberta, and were active members of the Calgary Mosquito Society, whose mission is to preserve and educate about the history of the last photo survey de Havilland Mosquito and a Hawker Hurricane owned by the City of Calgary. This early exposure to aviation inspired Jordan to pursue a career in aviation maintenance, leading him to enroll in an aviation maintenance program in Canada. He said he has been fortunate to experience unique opportunities, such as being inside a Lancaster with all four engines running during a live engine run.
“I’ve just been lucky with life and people I’ve met,” Jordan said, “to be able to do stuff that nobody else can say, ‘Hey, I’ve done that!’”
Wyatt was introduced to aviation by his grandfather, who was an instructor pilot during the Vietnam War. Wyatt also volunteers at the aviation museum in North Carolina.
A spark of curiosity in high school set Cody on a path to a career in aviation maintenance. “I was a junior in high school getting ready for senior year when I saw they had a program for aviation maintenance,” he said. “I was like ‘Ooh, that sounds cool,’ but I wasn’t able to get in it at the time. But I decided that’s what I wanted to do. So then after high school, I got into aviation maintenance.”
Meeting in person always seemed like a distant dream, but the opportunity to attend EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, changed that. The group decided to book a cottage near Oshkosh and spend the entire week at AirVenture, following Jordan’s grandfather’s advice to book the whole week since it’s impossible to see everything in a single day.
The journey to Oshkosh was not without its challenges. Jordan had to navigate flights from Canada to Indiana with layovers in Atlanta and Chicago. From Indiana, they all drove to Wisconsin together, determined to make the most of the experience.
When the group finally met in person, the bond they had formed online translated seamlessly into real life. “You’d think it would be awkward meeting this many people for the first time, but it was like meeting up with old friends,” Jordan said.
