Aviation Week to Feature Trailblazing Pilot Without Arms

Motivational speaker Jessica Cox will visit Utah State University on Monday as part of the university’s Aviation Week.

Born without arms, Cox earned a Guinness World Record when she became the first woman to fly a plane with her feet.

Cox is the Dean’s Spring Speaker for the Quinney College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The event is also sponsored by the Institute for Disability Research, Policy & Practice within the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services.

Flying continues to be a passion for Jessica as she attends many of the largest aviation events in the world. She has been featured on CNN, National Geographic, Fox and Friends, and BBC News. As a motivational speaker she has inspired employees at AT&T, NASA and the Smithsonian.

She is also the author of Disarm Your Limits, an autobiographical self-help book that has sold more than 10,000 copies. A book signing will follow her USU presentation.

“Reading this book felt deeply personal to me,” writes Mary Ellen Heiner, an IDRPP staff member who reviewed the book in advance of Cox’s visit. “As someone who uses a wheelchair, I have faced many barriers — some physical,some created by other people’s expectations, some of myowncreationbecause of fear and even embarrassment because of my disability. Because of this,Jessica’s story felt familiar in many ways. Her message reminded me that challenges do not define what we can achieve. Instead, they can teach us new ways to adapt, problem-solve and keep moving forward.”

Cox has also created the Rightfooted Foundation International and spearheaded a project to build The Impossible Airplane, all with the goal of spreading the message: Disability is not inability.

Cox’s presentation is free and open to the public. It will begin at 7 p.m. at the Taggart Student Center International Lounge.