Human Interest - HL 327 (1)

Mother, daughter flying high as Delta pilots

By Jackie Salo   March 22, 2019

Wendy and Kelly RexonEmbry–Riddle Aeronautical University

This mother-daughter bond is on a different plane!

Passengers on a Delta flight from Los Angeles International Airport last weekend were stunned to learn they were in the hands of a family piloting team — Capt. Wendy Rexon and her first-officer daughter, Kelly Rexon.

After a flier snapped a photo of the pair in the cockpit of the Atlanta-bound plane, the duo quickly made waves on Twitter with more than 16,000 retweets.

“Just flew from LAX to ATL on Delta piloted by this mother daughter flight crew,” passenger Dr. John R. Watret tweeted. “Great Flight. Inspiring for young women.”

Watret — who is chancellor of the Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida — learned about the crew’s familial bond after a woman boarding the aircraft asked a flight attendant if her two kids could visit the pilots.

He said he overheard the family talking about the “mother and daughter” flying the plane, according to a university release.

“I thought that was amazing. I was in awe,” Watret said. “I asked if I could visit them, too.”

That’s when he learned aviation has even deeper roots in the Rexon family. Wendy’s father is a retired pilot, while her husband flies for American Airlines. Their other daughter, Kate, is also a pilot.

“The first officer had a great role model for becoming a pilot – her mother,” Watret said. “It’s good for aviation and inspiring for all of us.”

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