THE DREAM OF FLIGHT CAN BECOME REALITY
By
Thomas  Caylor, twcaylor@delta.edu 

            Have you ever dreamed of flying an airplane? Soaring the skies like a bird in flight? Many of us experience the fascination as young children, seeing big planes at the airport. We remember our first ride in a jet. And, many of us continue the interest throughout our lives, crossing the country with convenience and seeing the world with ease. As artist and inventor Leonardo daVinci (1452-1519) once said, "When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return."

            Delta College offers students the opportunity to follow their heart, live their dreams and experience flight at their own hands. The Aviation Flight Technology Program, in existence since the 1970s but "resurrected" in the early 1990s, has opened the skies to thousands of students, teaching them the skills needed to fly both small and large airplanes. Many graduates of the program fly for sport and fun, but the opportunities for employment are endless. With a degree in hand, graduates can work for:

Claire "Geni" Grant, Director of Delta's Aviation Flight Technology Program, has been a flight instructor for the College since 1994. According to Grant, two years of study, along with at least 40 hours of air time (30 with a flight instructor and ten hours solo) leads to an associate's degree. And, she said, many students transfer to four-year universities with aviation flight technology programs and earn bachelor's degrees.

            "Airlines are looking for people with degrees," Grant explained. "There is a lot of job potential out there for pilots, air traffic controllers, mechanics, airport managers and flight-related careers. The field is wide open."

            According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, airline pilots, copilots and flight engineers earned an average of $129,880 annually in 2003. (Grant says she knows of pilots working for large commercial airlines who earn more than $300,000 a year.) Air traffic controllers earned an average of $93,240, while commercial pilots (piloting small fixed or rotary winged aircraft) earned an average of $57,950.

Delta's program is a "tough one," according to Grant, requiring general education classes along with classes specific to the program: ground training for private pilots, instrument pilots and commercial pilots; primary and advanced pilot flight training; and an introduction to meteorology and aviation meteorology. In addition, the College recommends that students take elective classes in chemistry, calculus and physics.

And, the requirements of the program can be rigorous. As they fly with an instructor and solo, documentation must be maintained to record pre-flight preparation; ground operations; airport and traffic pattern operations; basic and performance maneuvers; slow flight, stalls and spin awareness; ground reference maneuvers; takeoffs and climbs; approaches and landings; basic instrument maneuvers; night operations; emergency operations; and cross-country navigation.

"It's can be very difficult," Grant said, "and can be costly. Besides classes, books and fees, students have to rent a plane and pay for flight instruction. For most, though, it's not the money thing. Flying is in the heart. They learn to fly because they want to. It's something they have to do. And, they succeed in doing so."

Currently, the program consists of 34 students, and Grant would like to see many more enrolled. She also would like to see more women enter the flight aviation technology field. Currently, only two of the 34 students in Delta's program are female. And, Grant is one of only a handful of female flight instructors in the business.

"Traditionally, flying has been a man's job," she said. "It takes a lot of courage and determination. You have to want it more than anything in the world. I think it's a career that more women ought to seriously consider."

            Grant's father was an Air Force pilot instructor, and she said she had flying "in the blood" from her earliest memories. "I saw his appreciation of flying over the years," she explained. "I wanted to prove something to myself and learn to fly. I wanted to stretch my boundaries."

            And, Grant has had her success stories. She estimated that more than 500 students have learned to fly an airplane under her tutoring. They fly leisurely, and also work for the Air Force, the Marines, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, commercial airlines, private companies, law enforcement agencies and many other organizations. They fly hunters and fishermen to Alaska and Canada. They pilot planes that carry skydivers. They tow banners across the sky. They are commercial bug sprayers and also members of aerobatics teams.

            Many have gone through the Delta program. "It's a good one," she said. "It's available to anyone. No one is turned away from the dream of flying. And, there are so many people to help students here."

            For more information on Delta College's Flight Aviation Technology Program, contact the Counseling and Academic Advising Office at (989) 686-9330 or www.delta.edu/degreesprograms/Aviation.asp.