Camp lets students take flight
Utah facility bestows
opportunity to youth from across the nation
Monday, July 21, 2008 11:12 AM PDT
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Westminster College summer camp is helping high school students reach new heights — literally.
Last week’s aviation camp put students from high schools across the U.S. and West Africa in the cockpit for two flights.
“It’s the greatest feeling being up there; it’s like a natural high,” said 17-year-old Ryan Pierce, of Cleveland. “You get to leave everything on the ground and just see the world for what it is.”
Westminster College’s aviation resource manager Gail Kolfstad said the program also exposes students to careers in aviation, including management and operations. Students earn two college credits after completing the camp.
“They leave with increased confidence, not only in aviation but in themselves, but also an idea of the college experience and thinking of career options,” Kolfstad said.
Most campers are already interested in aviation and have explored some career options. The one-week camp costs $839.
Kolfstad said the program is a good recruiting tool for Westminster. Some campers return as students at the college and enroll in its aviation program.
“We’re one of the only schools that trains at an international airport and in Class B airspace,” Kolfstad said. “They’re flying right along with the big planes and communicating with air traffic control. After that experience, our students aren’t intimidated to fly anywhere.”
Westminster owns 13 planes, which were purchased with a donation provided to the school eight years ago. The school also has state-of-the-art flight simulators.
“Our camps are purposefully designed to be a bit challenging,” Kolfstad said.
“Kids leave with an awareness that they can try new things and succeed.”
On flight days, instructors walk students through preflight inspections of the four-seater Archer III planes, including battery, fuel and tire-pressure checks.
Camper Jeric Joseph said he found learning to fly while communicating with ground control both challenging and exciting.
“The radios are pretty hard to get, remembering all you have to say and all ways to say it,” said Joseph, 15, who has already spent about 12 professional hours in a plane and wants to fly for the Air Force. “You have to listen closely to what they’re saying to you and remember what you need to say to them.”
Ariel Lund, a camper from West Jordan, Utah, said she appreciates the technical parts flying, but also loved the “gorgeous” view the cockpit offers.
“It’s so exciting to fly. You smile the whole time you’re up there,” Lund said.
