It was clear to Rena Achten from an early age that she wanted to fly and travel abroad. She started as a flight attendant, but she wanted more technical aspects in her work. When women began to be admitted to flight training in the mid-1980s, she became one of Germany’s first female commercial pilots. She then spent several decades flying for Lufthansa. She ends her career as a captain of the A380, the world’s largest passenger plane. Yet her decision for a pilot’s career and the nomadic life that comes with the job meant making comprises in her personal life. She thoughtfully reflects back on her career, the cultural transformation in the cockpit, and her personal turning points. When the plane finally takes off, leaving the sparking lights of the metropolis beneath it, and the sun shines into the cockpit high above the clouds, the fascination of her profession becomes palpable.