Education Through Aviation
Bill Pritchett | [email protected]
"All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move." —Benjamin Franklin
Our lives take many twists and turns, and being involved in model aviation certainly provides many additional people, stories, places, and opportunities to learn.
I recently returned from Denver, Colorado, and the Wings Over the Rockies Museum. This is one of the coolest aviation venues I’ve ever seen. Utilizing an enormous Air Force hangar left over from Langley Air Force Base, Wings is a huge venue displaying an amazing collection of mostly military aircraft.
I was fortunate to attend the annual model aviation expo and represent the AMA’s educational offerings with the chair of the AMA Education Committee, Travis McGinnis. The event is in its seventh year.
Our great AMA members in the Denver area are to be congratulated and thanked. There were many model clubs, organizations, and vendors of model gear available to the nearly 2,000 paying guests who were given an impressive introduction to model aviation.
Available demonstrations and displays included:
- Turbine run-ups
- Control-line (CL) demos
- 3-D foamy aircraft
- Spectacular free-flight (FF) demos
Denver-area modelers brought in countless great models. It was truly an expo for all to be proud of.
Mike Harrington and his Team AMA Colorado Xtreme Airshow Team had a great-looking display, and AeroWorks, a Denver company, was there to support Wings as well.
We have people in our organization who move, and so does Wings. I had the pleasure of meeting with its administrative staff and am proud to announce that model aviation and the AMA will have a permanent presence in Wings.
The organization’s education offerings are wonderful; we both concentrate on STEM requirements and look for every possible opportunity to connect educational activities and aviation. To step back and consider the collaborative effort of Wings and the AMA represents countless years and people—people who move.
The Wings facility is nearing completion of a major renovation and will have a 35-foot-high entryway with a mobile of— you guessed it—model aircraft. It will be one of the first things every guest to Wings will see. Wings people move!
Much effort has gone into Wings for many years, as has much work for the celebration we’re having this year for the AMA’s 75th Anniversary.
I’ve mentioned people who move and the twists and turns our lives take. Jim Rice, AMA District VIII vice president, shared the following story from his district website. I was so moved by it I wanted to share it with all of you:
“As you may know if you read the Last Flights section of this website, Kyle Foote, a very likable and talented young AMA member and full-scale pilot, passed away in October after a car accident. His father, Terry, continues to post on a blog that I subscribe to, and I found the note below that I thought we could all appreciate and grow from.
“Terry continues to go through Kyle’s things and finds amazing glimpses into his personal life and his insights about the world around him. This piece is priceless in my opinion.” —JR
Excerpt from a paper by Kyle Foote
You ever watch that eBay commercial on TV where they say "shop victoriously"? Well... I feel like I won the lottery or caught the pass for the winning touchdown! I found an old paper I wrote for one of my classes. It seems I was supposed to write a paper that told what set me apart from others.
I can sit and write about him hour after hour. I suppose moms and dads can do that sort of thing because they really know their kids better than anyone else. Well, here ya have it, straight from Kyle:
What sets Kyle Foote apart from the rest? I set out to get my education just like all the rest in my class.
I tried sports at the lower levels. I competed in little league baseball and basketball at the local YMCA. Junior high basketball caught my attention next.
When I became a freshman in high school I found myself gravitating to the marching band. I lettered all four years and became a section leader in my senior year. I had found my niche and I succeeded in doing something I really liked.
My academic studies were acceptable and I made grades that were really good in most areas, but math and foreign language were a challenge. During all of my academic years I had a hobby that would one day get me to think about using it as a career path.
I started flying radio-controlled model airplanes as a hobby and pastime when I was eight years old. It wasn't until I was about halfway through high school that I thought about pursuing a career in aviation. I was busy building and designing different models of planes from the very small to large-scale heavyweights, and all the while my skills in math were improving. I was using complicated measurements, angles of incidence, weights and measures, etc.
During this time of building and designing there came a transformation of my flying skills. Members of my model airplane club started coming to me to test-fly their planes. I started entering competitions and surpassing the flying skills of just about everyone, including my dad. While this would appear to be a normal course of events, one had to remember that there were about 160 members of the club.
My dad had been one of the club experts in training others and doing a lot of test flying for the membership. As I gained experience and skill these same members were coming to me to do these piloting chores. My dad acknowledges that I have surpassed his skills and is very proud of me.
My first flight in a friend's Cessna 182 found me piloting with relative ease. My instructor was my dad in the back seat with raised eyebrows. It seems that my models were actually playing the part of a simulator when I got to the controls of the real plane.
My skills bolstered my confidence and brought about a desire to fly for a living. My dad said that anyone could fly but an educated pilot was going to be well paid. After all, a modern plane is a complex series of mechanical and electronic systems, and it is going to take an educated individual to operate it. This became my goal. My early success at models was going to be my ticket to becoming a pilot. I had to make a decision to raise my grades and use my talent to do what I wanted to do... fly!
This was my defining moment to make my dream of flight possible. I feel that this is what sets me apart from others. I will leave you with this thought: try to get involved in something that may set you apart in life. I'm glad I had what it takes to be me!
My guess is that Kyle would have gone on to do bigger and better things in his life. I'm glad he was who he was.
Fly and have fun!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
