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SIDELINESMAGAZINE | October 2026
itting jump seat in the cockpit of
a FedEx cargo plane, eyes closed
but ears intently listening for any
sound indicating one of the three horses in
the cargo area may be discontent, Natasha
Klingenstein, business operations manager
for the international transport company
Horseflight, briefly wondered what she had
signed up for. Her first job as an in-flight
groom was a grueling “milk run,” where she
was getting four flights’ worth of experience
over one continuous 26-hour journey.
The aircraft crisscrossed the country
from Florida to Alaska, making stops in
NATASHA
KLINGENSTEIN
Flying High With Horses
By Diana Bezdedeanu • Portraits by Kacy Brown
Memphis, Los Angeles and Seattle while
temperatures plunged from 90 to 38 degrees.
“Ultimately, that experience confirmed I was
exactly where I was meant to be,” Natasha
recalled. “I felt that I was directly impacting
these horses’ lives by making what could be a
stressful experience positive and comfortable.”
LEARNING TO FLY
Although Natasha’s career now centers
around horses flying 30,000 feet in the air,
that’s not where her love of equines began.
Growing up in Torrance, California, her initial
exposure to horses was at a nonprofit self-care
co-op barn right in the middle of the city. This
no-frills stable taught Natasha responsibility
and that caring for horses isn’t glamorous; it’s
showing up every day and giving them your all,
even when no one is watching. Reminiscing,
Natasha laughed, “When I was little, I thought
I was going to be a cowgirl because the horse I
was riding at the time was ex-rodeo.”
That dream shifted during a family vacation
when she was 10 years old. While trail riding at
a dude ranch, her horse encountered a log lying
across the path. Rather than simply stepping
over it like every other horse had done, her
horse launched over the obstacle. “That flying
Natasha Klingenstein in
Ocala, Florida.