This RSAF pilot couldn’t fly because of pregnancy. So she went to Norway to scale different heights

SINGAPORE – A thousand metres in the air and 27 weeks pregnant, Ms Fiona Lee got on all fours.  

The 31-year-old tentatively inched onto a boulder wedged in a crevice in the Kjerag mountain in southern Norway. She took some time to get used to her new centre of gravity – courtesy of her baby belly – but soon found her footing and got up on two feet.

“There was definitely a mental barrier to cross,” said the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) pilot on standing atop the renowned boulder in June 2024.

“But coming face to face with the sights I’ve seen only in photos made my worries disappear.”

“And I’m not that scared of heights,” she quipped. 

The tale of Ms Lee’s 2024 summer adventure reached the ears of Mr Leif Trana, Norway Ambassador to Singapore, who invited her to tea at the embassy on April 15.

On the 44th storey of the Hong Leong Building, Ms Lee animatedly recounted her 10-day trip, which involved climbing three mountains, to the Oslo native. 

While Pulpit Rock was relatively easy for Ms Lee and her software engineer husband, Mr Shao Fei, the 28km hike up Trolltunga and the steepness of Kjerag – which required them to hoist themselves up with a cable and chain – were more challenging. 

But the strength gained from 24km route marches in the military, done while carrying a rifle, came in handy and she conquered the peaks without too much difficulty. 

Ms Lee said she decided to embark on the trip to prove that “nothing is insurmountable and the body can achieve what the mind believes”. 

“Even when we are going through life transitions, we don’t have to give up parts of our identity and can continue to follow our passion,” she added, noting that safety remains the utmost priority.

Mr Trana, who himself has hiked the Pulpit Rock, told Ms Lee: “Doing what you did, seven months pregnant, is greatly inspiring. And then having your daughter and going back to a job that’s not very conventional is phenomenal.”

At the end of their meeting, Ms Lee gave the ambassador a patch worn by her RSAF squadron, and he gave her a glass figurine of a polar bear – which can be found in the wild in Norway in the region of Svalbard.

‘All storms will pass’ 

Ms Lee had been holding off motherhood due to her career, but decided to take the step after her mother was diagnosed with cancer in July 2023.

But pregnancy, which arrived in December 2023, came with a set of worries. Ms Lee could not fly, and was unsure if she would be able to return to the cockpit even after giving birth. 

“Flying had been such a big part of my identity and my life for the longest time, and I had worked so, so hard to make it as a military pilot,” she said.

Ms Lee, who flies the C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft, and has gone on airlift and ferry missions to Australia and Thailand.

“All these uncertainties came crashing down... I was getting so bogged down and worried about having to make huge compromises in my life.” So she decided to challenge herself with a trip abroad to quell the internal unease.

Ms Lee said she knows that her decision to go on the trip as near the end of the second trimester of her pregnancy might seem controversial to some, but noted that months were spent preparing for the trip to ensure it would be safe for her and her baby.

The couple decided on Norway as days are long in the summer, and the nation’s medical facilities are advanced, she said. “And the views are unparalleled, they are tremendously beautiful.”

They analysed more than 30 YouTube videos of hikers scaling the mountains to figure out if the terrain would be suited for her during her pregnancy. Ms Lee also applied an aviation concept – the point of no return – to map out the schedule the couple should follow during the climbs to ensure they would complete them before dark.

As she took the last few steps to each peak, Ms Lee said she felt hugely emotional, overwhelmed by a sense of achievement.

“But the greatest takeaway was the realisation that all storms will pass if we just have faith and keep moving forward,” she said. 

Ms Lee hopes that her daughter Avril, who was born on Sept 1 – making her an RSAF Day baby – will share her parents’ love for travel and the outdoors. 

She and her husband started their daughter’s travel adventures early, with the family revisiting Norway in April. They gave hiking a miss this time round, but karted, sledded and made snow angels. 

“Avril might not remember these experiences, but I hope it can trigger her senses and help her grow and develop to love the outdoors,” she said.

Norwegian peaks conquered, Ms Lee is now on leave and firmly focused on scaling motherhood, which may also present unpredictable terrain to overcome.

She said: “It feels like there is an added dimension to life now and the joy Avril brings is immeasurable. We never knew how much love and strength we had until she came along.” 

“Self-doubt and worries are all in the mind,” added Ms Lee. “Adventure doesn’t end when you have a baby, it starts when you have one.”

Clarification note: This story has been updated for clarity.