EAA Pilots Giv e Rides to Children Without Charge

By Jackie Stone, 'Killeen Daily Herald'

First-grade teacher and private pilot Michelle Trudo of Killeen, Texas, is one of several pilots who volunteered recently to give free plane rides as part of the Experimental Aviation Association's Young Eagles program, which aims to get children and teens interested in flying. The organization holds a few rallies each year with the goal of giving 50 children between the ages of eight and 17 a ride in a small plane. Eleven-year-old Joshua Evarts has always wanted to be a jet pilot ever since his dad, a helicopter pilot, took him to the Naval Airstation in Pensacola, Fla., a few years ago. After getting out of the four-seater Beechcraft at the rally, he was grinning widely. "It was awesome," he said. Young Eagles pilot Jim Livingston says some kids are nervous going up, but all of them are excited and want to go again once they land.

October 14, 2009