The airBaltic Pilot Academy is not only shaping future pilots! it’s also quietly building bridges that bring people back to Latvia.
Many students come to Latvia from abroad, drawn by the opportunity to train at airBaltic’s Pilot Academy and become part of one of Europe’s most modern airlines. Some of these students also use this opportunity to discover their own Latvian roots. Perhaps they grew up in Latvian families that had emigrated abroad, or maybe they left Latvia for work and are now returning to their native country. In any case, the academy has become a place where dreams and identity meet.
One of the most recent examples is Mikus Ēriks Atvars, who began his studies at the! Pilot Academy in November of last year. Born and raised in Munich, Atvars has a Latvian mother, while his father was born to Latvian parents in the United States and grew up there. Despite his heritage, Atvars had never spent more than a few weeks at a time in Latvia before moving here to study.
His dream of becoming a pilot began early, but it grew stronger after high school, when he worked at Munich Airport as a passenger service agent. Later, while performing at a festival in the United Kingdom with other Latvians, someone suggested to Atvars that he should join airBaltic. That idea stayed with him. Curious, he searched online to find out whether airBaltic has its own pilot academy. Discovering that it does was a turning point. “From that moment on, enrolling in the airBaltic Pilot Academy became my goal,’ he says. ‘I knew I couldn’t allow myself to fail.”
Now, just weeks into his studies, Atvars has fully embraced his new life. The training is demanding, but he feels he is exactly where he should be. Most importantly, he has found a sense of belonging he didn’t expect. “I really adore living in Latvia,” he says. “I’m very happy to be here.” Stories like his show how aviation can bring people home – not only through flights but also through opportunity, identity, and the promise of a future in the skies.
