Flyin’ High Teen Explores Flight Fantasy At Aviation Academy

When I was 6 or 7 years old, airplanes began to intrigue me. I was amazed at their complexity and awed by their “drivers.” This little spark continued to grow in me; at each air show it flamed a little bigger.

With my first airplane ride, around the age of 8, I was consumed with its indescribable freedom. I knew flying was what I wanted to do.

That brings me to where I am now: 16 years old, well on my way to my private pilot’s license and looking for every opportunity to help me fulfill my career plans.

When I heard about the Idaho Aviation Careers Education (ACE) Academy, I realized it would be a chance of a lifetime. It promised to help its students learn how to land a job flying fighters in the U.S. Air Force, or 747s for an airline, by providing hands-on field trips and guest speakers in exciting Q&A seminars.

There was more: career guidance in airport management, flight attending, the Flight Service Station, and air traffic control.

I sent for the application, filled it out and mailed it with much anticipation. Two weeks later, I got a call and was told I was accepted. I was soaring!

A whole week of studying aviation careers? This sounded like paradise for someone as excited about aviation as I am. Curious, I wondered how much fun could possibly fit into five days.

I arrived at the Boise airport with several other ACE students. We loaded into a van that took us to the Boise State University campus where we checked in and were assigned dorm rooms. During dinner and after, we had a chance to get to know each other.

I found it interesting that even though most of us had never met before, we all had a common bond: aviation. This made it seem like we had been friends for a long time. Aviation is like that; it’s a brotherhood of attitudes, professional actions and higher altitudes. It made the week all the more valuable.

To describe everything we did during our week would be more than you or I could handle, so here are the highlights. The tour of the Boise International Airport, Flight Service Station and the airport fire station were the most interesting to me.

The tour took us through the air traffic control tower, where the airplanes are guided, safely spaced from other aircraft into a landing and around the airport taxiways. A rather weighty job in a busy airport.

Downstairs from the control floor are the “scope dopes,” men and women who stare at large round screens with radar blips of aircraft within a 30-mile or more radius.

At the Flight Service Station, I saw how a weather briefing is given to people preparing for cross-country flights and how flight plans are filed. It’s all done with the help of high-tech computers and graphics.

The most exciting thing to all of us was at Gowen Field where the Idaho Air Guard is stationed with their F-4s. We not only got to sit in the fighter planes and pretend to pilot them, but were allowed to fly the F-4 simulator. Sitting in an authentic mock cockpit surrounded by 3D screens really got the adrenaline running. It was as close to the real thing as you can get, except you can’t feel those eight Gs the monitors say you pulled during that last turn.

Another great thing we were able to take part in was the Young Eagles Flight. It’s a national program sponsored by the Experimental Aircraft Association. Its goal is to give 100,000 young people aircraft rides by the year 2000 in an effort to expose people to aviation.

The flights are given by pilots who donate their time, aircraft and money for the flights. During my flight, I met a great pilot, Jerry Terlisner, and logged a half hour of Cessna 170A taildragger time. Some of the other students were lucky enough to get a ride in a RV-4, a sporty, high-performance homebuilt plane flown by Lt. Col. Dick Colliander. He got some hefty oohs and ahs from his passengers.

Career day had its highlights and drags, but overall it appealed to most. Fourteen careers were discussed in the course of the afternoon by fascinating people in the industry, like hot air balloonist Scott Spencer (the builder and flyer of the ReMax balloon), Jerry Wooley, a head engineer from Boeing, and Melanie Jones, a flight attendant for Horizon Air.

The week came to a positive end when Steve Soper, the only paralyzed stunt pilot in the world, gave a closing speech on taking advantage of the opportunities you’re given in life - something I know the ACE students will always remember.

I want to thank all of the people who made the ACE Academy such a worthwhile experience for me. Looking back at the program, the entire week was not only enjoyable but a valuable asset to my future career in aviation. I would definitely recommend the program to all aviation enthusiasts.

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Flying high on ACE Forty high school students from Idaho were chosen to attend the 1995 ACE Academy in Boise from July 16-21. Put on by the Idaho Transportaiton Department’s Division of Aeronautics, the program was a chance to explore careers in aviation and aerospace, and have a little fun with flight. Here are a few comments from local teenagers who attended: “You never think about all the little things that go on in an airport when you’re getting on or off your plane. It’s so complicated.” -Darren Zychek, a senior at Lakeland High in Hayden Lake. “There were a lot of really nice people who took time out to tell us how to get into a career in aviation. I want to be a commercial pilot but I didn’t exactly know how to go about it. Now I do.” -Brieanna Rozell, a sophomore at Coeur d’Alene High “Being a pilot is a lot of work, a lot of responsiblity, and a lot of fun, too. I don’t want to do anything else.” -Anthony Zenahlik, a sophomore at Coeur d’Alene High “I just love being up in the air.” -Amber Schnider, a junior at Lakeland.