CHOICES (Episode #10) – Melissa Dawn Burns

Melissa Dawn Burns: Champion Aerobatic Pilot talks about setting goals and staying open to new opportunities.

Melissa is a professional aerobatic pilot, display skydiver and B.A.S.E. jumper. She holds two degrees from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, has over 5,000 hours of flight time, more than 3,500 skydives and 1,000 BASE jumps. In 2006, at 22 years old, Melissa became the youngest female member of the United States Unlimited Aerobatic Team, in history.  She went on to place 3rd overall in the 2015 World Aerobatic Championships after 10 years of competing at the Unlimited World Level.

Melissa was named the Fastest Woman in the World at the World Champion Wingsuit B.A.S.E. Race in Norway in 2015 and has participated in numerous skydiving world records.  She was also named as an inductee to the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Chancellor’s Hall of Fame in 2015 in Prescott, AZ.

Melissa holds her air transport rating in the US and Canada and a pilots license in seven different countries. She has worked as a Glacier pilot in Alaska and has run an airshow demonstration team since 2005, providing aerobatic displays and skydiving displays.  Some of those displays include a ‘wing suit and aerobatics’ routine that her team created and worked to legalize around the world, flying aerobatic aircraft and wingsuit skydivers in formation in front of audiences worldwide.

She has been featured on Australia’s 60 minutes, Caught on Camera, CBS Sunday Morning Show and the documentary ‘Sky Dancers’ as well as the BASE movie ‘Keen’n Able’

Lastly, Melissa recently became a mom, and as a new parent myself, I found it very insightful to hear how someone so active is choosing to navigate this new phase of life. As you will hear, she’s thoughtful, intentional, humble and soft spoken, yet she possesses a driving force that allows her to accomplish anything she sets her mind to.

In this episode we talk about the power of setting goals, of staying open to new opportunities, the importance of not letting our external identities define who we really are, the value of recognizing other peoples’ achievements, the importance of maintaining a healthy life-balance — mind, body and spirit — and striving to make a positive impact in the world around us.

Thank you, Melissa, for your willingness to share so much of your life’s journey, and thanks to all of you who are tuning in.