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Autistic pilot Hayden McDonald will tell his stories for Dubbo and Moree audiences via video link after plans changed due to bad weather.
Mr McDonald didn't make it to Dubbo on Sunday, October 1 as initially scheduled because he could not fly his Jabiru due to turbulence and forecast weather conditions which were too hot for his small plane.
He has now cancelled visits to Dubbo and Moree and will be grounded in Sydney for a week due to the weather.
He will, however, present via Zoom to Dubbo Rotary on Monday, October 2.
EARLIER
Hayden McDonald wants neurodiverse people to know that they can follow their dream - even if that's flying a plane.
The 22-year-old from WA is undertaking what could be the first solo circumnavigation around Australia by an autistic pilot - and he's stopping in Dubbo to tell his story.
During the two-month trip in a small Jabiru J120 light aircraft, Mr McDonald will visit 28 towns (35 including refuelling stops) in all mainland states, and speak at schools and to communities.
He hopes the journey will demonstrate his flying ability and bring greater understanding and acceptance of autism.
Mr McDonald has created Wings Without Barriers, an organisation lobbying for acceptance and change in the aviation industry.
His trailblazing came off the back of heartache when his application for a medical was reportedly rejected by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) because he is autistic.
Mr McDonald said he had dreamed of flying with the Royal Flying Doctor Service but CASA denied him on the grounds his "autism spectrum disorder represents unacceptable risk to aeronautical navigation".
"I have two goals for this trip. One is to speak to schools and community groups to create better understanding and acceptance of autism, and the second goal is to encourage CASA to be more flexible with its regulatory processes for autistic pilots," Mr McDonald said.
"I want CASA to change the discriminatory medical process. I'm not saying scrap the medical process, because no one wants to compromise aeronautical safety, but realistically, the system needs to be modernised to have greater flexibility.
"Autism is not a one-size-fits-all. It is not acceptable to have a blanket rule that ostracises every autistic pilot in Australia."
Mr McDonald's love of aviation started as a young child when he would fly with this grandfather. That fondness grew and at the age of 15 he took to the cockpit himself, obtaining a recreational pilot's certificate at 17.
Mr McDonald was in Gosford when the Daily Liberal spoke with him, and he said his trip had been smooth so far - except for one unexpected situation he navigated between Parkes and Wyong.
"There's quite a significant area near the Great Dividing Range where it has unexpectedly lower clouds than we expected and the ceiling is about 7000 feet and then the tops were about 9000 feet," he said.
"So I was currently trying to find ways to get around this cloud, but once I got to Denman, that's when I found a gap and I actually just went for it."
Mr McDonald said he had enjoyed speaking at schools and the children had enjoyed hearing his stories and asked a lot of questions.
"One came out to me and said you made me come out of my shell. So they actually enjoyed it, and I think in my opinion, it actually changed their perspective on the world," he said.
IN OTHER NEWS
Mr McDonald is the son of respected rural fiction author Fleur McDonald.
So far, he has made his way across the Nullarbor staying at Ceduna, Whyalla, Port Augusta, Orroroo, Broken Hill, Warracknabeal and Parkes.
He will be speaking to the Dubbo community in an event organised by the Rotary Club of Dubbo on Monday, October 2 at 6pm at the Westside Hotel.
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