Snow Storm, Airport – For this week’s edition of The Next Leader, we’ll be catching up with frequent flyer Kelsey from the Fighter Pilots! Let’s see what she has been up to!
Kelsey first joined the army community in early 2020 when she enlisted in the legendary Golds army. On May 26th, following the army’s shutdown and merge with Ice Warriors, she would then instead move over to the Fighter Pilots. In this new setting, she quickly found her footing and climbed her way to the top of the ranks.
Golds’ 13th Anniversary Celebration in 2020
She played a great role in Fighter Pilots’ success and kept the community thriving. The Pilots had great weekly placements in the Top Tens and even a silver medal in the SubZero Showdown. During this time, Kelsey earned her promotion to Second in Command, making her first in line for Pilot in Command!
In the weeks and months leading up to the death of Flash, they kept up their hype as well. With plenty of Holiday-themed events, the Fighter Pilots seemed stronger than ever. Unfortunately, on January 13th, the pilots decided to close their doors permanently.
Fighter Pilots event in December 2020
The Fighter Pilots server then transformed into a hangout and gaming server. This included games such as Jackbox and Minecraft, but the majority of members either retired or moved armies. For Kelsey, the road did not end there either and she decided to head over to the Special Weapons and Tactics. She spent approximately a month in said army until going on break and eventually leaving SWAT to focus on school.
Now, nine months after our first interview, I got out my detectives’ cap and tracked Kelsey down! What has she been up to and what has she taken with her from Club Penguin Army experience?
Hey Kelsey and welcome back to The Next Leader! What have you been up to and what have the Fighter Pilots’ community been up to since we last talked?
Thank you! Ever since Fighter Pilots’ shut down, I searched around for a new army home and ended up in SWAT for about a month. I was only able to attend a select few events, in which led me to be on temporary leave because I am a full time student so I just took a long break. It eventually led to me “leaving” SWAT. I still visit sometimes, but other than that I have been away from armies for more than a handful of months. The Fighter Pilots’ community sort have went their own way in terms of either joining another army or just retiring all together. Some of us still chat in FP general but other than that its sadly been a ghost town (I’m hoping they make a comeback one day).
You already mentioned my next question, which would be your opinion on a comeback! Do you think the Pilot community will make a CP comeback one day in the future? If so, would you return as well?
I think there would be a possibility of a comeback but I’m not sure under who’s leadership. As much as I wanted them to have a comeback, I think some of the previous leaders would be too busy to deal with all of the responsibilities that comes with leading an army. I would love to see it though.
From your career in armies, what do you think was the most valuable lesson? What did you learned that you can take with you into the world?
Armies taught me a lot of things but it also taught me to love my enemy. Armies are all about competition, land control and winning those battles, but more importantly its about having fun. Even though armies can have tons of enemies, its really important to not take it too seriously and ruin relationships. You have to stop and think that they are in the same boat trying to achieve the same things you are. So I thought that building relationships with the enemy is just as important as making allies.
That’s quite a smart way to think of it! That leads me to my next question, do you have any regrets or anything you wish you had accomplished during your time? If you could turn back time, what would you do?
I don’t regret much except for not pushing myself to my limits to become leader. I feel like I missed many chances or didn’t try hard enough. I think that if I had, maybe the Fighter Pilots’ would still be up and running or atleast had more backup for when other leaders were busy. If I could turn back time I would have tried harder!
Thank you Kelsey so much for catching up with me, I am lucky to have found you on Discord once more and I wish you all the best!
tysmm !!! and you too!
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Love your enemy and push your limits! Wise words from Kelsey as we take a look back at the amazing Fighter Pilots. Who knows, maybe one day we’ll see the pilots ascend their planes to the heights of the Top Ten once more.
What do YOU think? Are you hoping for a Fighter Pilots comeback? Let us know in the CPAN Discord server!
🌈 Kally
CPA Network Editor
