Daughter’s dream comes true as she co-pilots Southwest Airlines flight with her dad

This dad-and-daughter team may take family bonding to the dizzying new heights – 40,000 feet high, as the case may be.

First Officer MacKenzie Rennhack always dreamed of being a pilot, aspiring to be like her dad, Captain Michael Rennhack.

MacKenzie’s dream finally became a reality and she got to share the cockpit with her proud father.

READ MORE: Daughter fulfills dad’s lifelong dream by buying him his dream motorbike

The Southwest Airlines dream team

When Mackenzie was a young girl, she used to dress up like a pilot.

After she did a ‘discovery flight’ – a short intro flight for those considering getting a pilot’s license – she became determined to take to the skies.

When she got older, she attended Arizona State University where she enrolled in the University Pathway of the Southwest Airlines Destination pilot pathways program.

Since finishing, she was taken on as a first officer for Southwest.

Mackenzie and Mike got together for an emotional shot inside the cockpit, alongside Mackenzie’s mom, brother, and fiance.

Reflecting on her working relationship with her dad, she commented: “The weirdest thing was figuring out what to call you.

“It’s like, captain, Mike, dad.”

Talking to a local news channel, Mackenzie spoke of her childhood ambitions.

“I do remember when I was little, I’d have career day and I’d run down and grab my dad’s hat,” she said.

“I’d grab his blazer and feel like I was on top of the world. And I’d go to career day thinking I had the coolest dad.”

Mike had no doubts that his daughter would make it: “She’s always been the overachiever.

“110 percent isn’t good enough, she’d get a little bit better, she’d push a little bit harder.

“The golden age of learning to fly is now.”

With the US estimated to have a pilot shortage of 30,000 by the year 2032, there’s never been a more pertinent time to learn.