Ali on the Run Show27 Aug 2024

743. Kate Gunderson, Flight Test Engineer

"I wanted to change the world just like she had."

Kate Gunderson — best known online as "The Plane Kate" — is living a real-life Top Gun...kind of. (She'll explain!) Kate is a flight test engineer (a literal woman in STEM!), a former NASA engineer, and a nine-time marathoner with a 3:18 personal best. In this conversation, Kate explains what her role entails, what it's like being in flight test school, and how she handles being a woman in a very male-dominated industry (she's the only woman in her program!). She offers advice on improving your confidence, on speaking up when you're "the only," and on chasing your biggest dreams. Plus, all about her first flight, what it took to run a massive personal best, and whether or not she still dreams of heading into space someday.

FOLLOW KATE @theplanekate

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Lagoon: Click here to take Lagoon's 2-minute sleep quiz to see which pillow is right for you. (Emma Bates and I are both Otters!) Use code ALI at checkout for 15% off your order.

What you'll get on this episode:

Top Gun vs. real life, and what Kate's first flight was like (2:30)
On being a woman in a male-dominated industry (7:25)
When Kate knew she wanted to pursue a career in space (10:10)
How Kate made her dreams come true (14:50)
On life in test pilot school (30:15)
How Kate met her soon-to-be husband (46:15)
What's the dream now? (52:30)
How — and why — Kate became a runner (58:05)
What it took to run a 3:18 marathon (1:01:20)
On doing the right thing, even when it's hard (1:05:55)
Kate's advice for beating imposter syndrome (1:10:30)

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