She may have just started her aviation career, but that has not stopped one young pilot from flying thousands of kilometres across the Top End and Gulf of Carpentaria.

Based in the Northern Territory, 21-year-old Olivia Magoffin is a station pilot with one of Australia's biggest beef and cattle producers.

Her job entails flying thousands of kilometres around Queensland's north-west region and the Territory's Top End, mustering cattle and delivering mail, passengers, and on one occasion, a dachshund puppy.

Ms Magoffin did not grow up in the outback. She is from inner-city Brisbane and was brought up by a single mum.

Checking water in Queensland's Channel Country earlier this year after lots of rainfall. ( Supplied: Olivia Magoffin )

"I thought I wanted an adventure, I just didn't know what I wanted to do," she said.

"I thought I'd be a diving instructor, I wanted to be an artist, I just wanted to do something that would let me see the world and Australia, and then I thought being a pilot would be a cool idea."

Her first job was on a station south of Quilpie where she learned "everything that you need to know", including how to drive a tractor and chase cows on a motorbike.

"I'd never ridden a motorbike before and was straight out onto a kickstart 1980s bike and off I went," she recalled.

"I was chasing sheep that day and got bogged and fell off about 30 times, all over the Channel Country, but I just kept getting back on."

Growing up fast

Ms Magoffin's steely resolve and determination has been offset by occasional glimpses of vulnerability as she described how tough it had been getting to where she is now.

The challenges of her position in a remote and tough working environment mean she had to grow up fast.

Learning the skills to manage unreasonable demands and saying "no", especially with regard to the weather, has been difficult.

Ms Magoffin says there is a lot of pressure in her job and she has had to learn and understand her limits. ( Supplied: Olivia Magoffin )

"It's developing your own assertiveness and in this day and age, that's what girls are taught from day dot," she said.

"We're trying to break out of that mould of doing what everyone says you have to do.

"When someone says 'get your arse here, now' you have to say, 'no, it's not happening'.

"You are the captain and nobody can tell you what do to when you're in the aircraft, you're in complete legal control and it's taken a lot of learning on my behalf."

As the day progresses and the earth heats up, flying gets bumpier, as it was here while doing a tank run at Carrandotta, Queensland. ( Supplied: Olivia Magoffin )

Ms Magoffin said as a pilot, if anyone got hurt she was the only way out because the Royal Flying Doctor Service might take an hour to arrive.

"There's lots of pressure and you have to know your limits, you have to know the aeroplane's limits," she said.

"There's a lot of decision-making and learning to be assertive and knowing your own worth. I learned that pretty fast."

Quest for adventure and challenge

Ms Magoffin studied aviation at Griffith University, but soon began to question her ability to become a pilot.

"I thought I was so out of my depth, I did not think I was nearly good enough," she said.

"But out of 150 of us, 60 lasted to flight training and by the end of that, there were probably only about 15 of us who finished."

Ms Magoffin's dashboard wobble doll proudly announces her 500 hours of flying time, clocked up in May. ( Supplied: Olivia Magoffin )

Ms Magoffin, who has been with her current employer since December, holds a commercial licence and has just clocked 600 hours of flying this week.

Day in the life of a station pilot Fly from her home station to another station to drop off a passenger

Fly from her home station to another station to drop off a passenger Check paddocks to scare cattle out of corners and push them to water "so they don't perish"

Check paddocks to scare cattle out of corners and push them to water "so they don't perish" Fly to another 100ha paddock to locate nine 'stranger cows' (from another station)

Fly to another 100ha paddock to locate nine 'stranger cows' (from another station) Comfort stop at Urandangie

Comfort stop at Urandangie Fly to Mount Isa to drop off mail

Fly to Mount Isa to drop off mail Back to her home station — call ahead to see if they need anything

Back to her home station — call ahead to see if they need anything Land at home but then head to Cloncurry to pick up a water pump

Land at home but then head to Cloncurry to pick up a water pump Fly back to the home station Total: About 2,000km and 7.7 flying hours

She is enthusiastically passionate about her job and about flying, so much so that her face lights up when talking about it.

"Oh my gosh, just taking off and knowing you are free," she said.

"Feeling your ears pop every single time you're flying out and you're just, 'yes, this is my life' and I just love it so much.

"The freedom of controlling the aircraft and knowing that it's entirely you and just an extension of your body is the best feeling ever.

"I love the outback, it's so amazing — the scenery, the act of getting up in the morning and having breakfast with everyone at the station and then getting yourself ready for work.

"Even if I'm not flying that day, and I'm out with the crew and we're doing fencing or we're in the yards chasing cows, there's so much community to it.

"We always have to work together. Even if you're having issues with someone, you have to work together to get the job done.

"I'll probably look back on this in 20 years and be, like, this is it, this is the best job ever."

Time for a quick coffee in between stops at Mount Isa Airport. ( Supplied: Olivia Magoffin )

Unsurprisingly, Ms Magoffin has a bucket list of challenges she would still like to undertake — island flying in a Beaver or Twin Otter [aircraft], flying in Papua New Guinea, visiting Africa.

Commercial passenger jets are not on her horizon — yet.

As she prepared for flying exams, Ms Magoffin had a message for others with dreams of adventure.

"It will be hard and you will fail, but always come back up and keep on trying," she said.

"Just because something happens and you might be thrown behind a bit, just jump back up and keep going, keep on trying."