Graduation Tales | First-class honours for aviation pioneer Emily

The International Convention Centre Wales in Newport has once again seen thousands of our graduates cross the stage in their cap and gown. To celebrate, we are sharing the stories of some of our inspirational students.

When she was just 18, Emily Creedy became a record breaker, becoming the youngest person ever to work on a prototype electric aircraft.

Now aged 21, Emily has just graduated with first-class honours in her Aircraft Maintenance Engineering degree from the University of South Wales (USW), and has a wide variety of options available to her as she moves into the world of aviation engineering.

Emily, who’s originally from Exeter in Devon, started her route towards academic success after completing her GCSEs when she was accepted onto an apprenticeship scheme with the now defunct airline FlyBe.

“I took on the apprenticeship after school as I’d always been interested in aeroplanes and aviation,” she said. “I was really pleased to have been accepted onto the programme and to hear I was placed as second best out of 650 who’d applied.”

Being run through Exeter College, the course jointly run with Flybe saw Emily start working towards her degree in aircraft maintenance. And it was while at college that she got involved with California-based aviation company Ampaire.

“The college passed on an email from Ampaire asking if anyone was interested in seeing the aircraft and learning more about it,” Emily said.

“I went along to have a look and was then asked to get involved with the maintenance. This was exciting for me as it was a prototype, using an electric motor to power the aeroplane, which is based around a Cessna-type small aircraft. It actually broke the record for the longest electric aircraft flight when it went between John O'Groats and Exeter.

“It was while working with Ampaire that I became what you could call a record breaker, as I was the youngest person ever to work on the maintenance of this type of aircraft.”

Emily’s work with Ampaire was, unfortunately, shortlived, as the company pulled out of its development work in the UK. Emily then suffered a double blow when Flybe went into administration.

“With Flybe going under it meant the course at Exeter was no longer running, so I had to find a place where I could finish my degree,” Emily said.

“I looked around at a number of different places, and found that USW was the right choice for me – I really liked what was available here, and you could see the expertise and experience on offer from the teaching team.

“And, if you’re doing the practical side of aircraft maintenance, there's really good facilities for that at USW, it’s a really good option.”

Now a graduate with a top-class degree to her name, what has Emily got planned for the future?

“I’m really interested in continuing in aviation in some way but am undecided on what I will do next,” she said. “I find the space engineering side of the subject really interesting, so may look at going in the direction with my career.”