Jun Oikawa

Jun was born and raised in Japan, where female pilots are still extremely rare. Her passion for becoming a pilot started as early as 3rd grade, but her dream could not be pursued because she did not meet the height requirement for flight schools in Japan. After finishing high school, she joined Japan Air Self-Defense Force and served for 23 years, fulfilling various non-flying roles such as communications operator, interpreter, personnel/admin manager, and public relations officer. During that time, she married her husband who serves in the U.S. Air Force, and his change of station back to the U.S. made her decide to separate from the Japanese military and start pursuing her long-lost dream of becoming a professional pilot.

She enrolled in a college aviation program in Dayton, Ohio, and is currently working on becoming a Certified Flight Instructor. Training is tough, but she tries to have fun flying, too. Her most recent accomplishment was to finally take her 5 and 8 year-old sons out on a flight! Her ultimate dream job is to work for HondaJet Company as a pilot, but her number one priority is her family. As her husband retires from the U.S. Air Force in 2026, she and her husband will be looking for career opportunities together, where they can maintain the balance between their professional goals and family happiness.