Lauren Sanchez has much to look forward to in 2024, as she will kick off the new year by receiving the Elling Halvorson Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award from the Living Legends of Aviation. The founder of Black Ops Aviation will be honored alongside 100 other individuals for their remarkable achievements in aviation and aerospace.

Lauren Sanchez, former pop news reporter and news anchor, founded Black Ops Aviation, an aerial film company, where she now serves as CEO and helicopter pilot.

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Sanchez has been able to collaborate with Jeff Bezos‘ Blue Origin, and her business has helped firefighters.

During a Hollywood Reporter interview, Sanchez said she is so passionate about flying helicopters that she studied and trained hard to overcome her dyslexia. “I want to be in a helicopter all the time. Life can be so chaotic with so much going on. Lift off, and you’re in an energy space that no one else is in. It’s calming. When I’m up there, I’m completely satisfied. I’m like, ‘This is where I need to be,’” she said.

In 2022, Lauren Sanchez shared a photo from her helicopter training where she landed a different helicopter for the first time. The pic was of her thumb with a circular imprint from the throttle. “First time landing in a different helicopter #training,” she wrote over the pic along with “IYKUK.”