Preflight

Young people and aviation

Each December, AOPA Flight Training takes a look at an aspect of the college aviation scene. As you'll read in the cover story by Wayne Phillips (see "Small, Medium, Extra Large," p. 20), there are literally thousands of college students pursuing aviation degrees-and learning to fly-at institutions of higher learning across the country. Some 300 colleges and universities of all sizes offer at least one degree option in an aviation field (see our annual college directory on p. 26, or peruse the listings online.

From the anecdotal evidence we've seen, student interest in aviation-especially programs that will prepare them for careers as professional pilots-is as high as ever. This is especially encouraging because of the fact that pilot hiring (particularly by the airlines) is still recovering from an economic downturn exacerbated by the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. That indicates two things: These students, whether fresh out of high school or what educators like to call nontraditional students, recognize the historic cyclical nature of airline hiring, understand that the current conditions are temporary, and are pursuing something that they really want to do.

This shouldn't come as a surprise. Young people have been interested in aviation since the earliest days of flight. Generations of pilots got started by bicycling to the local airport on weekends and during the summer to wash airplanes, fuel airplanes, or do any number of odd jobs around the field in exchange for flight time. Many would solo on their sixteenth birthday and take their checkride exactly a year later-in both cases at the youngest legal age. Some fear that because of heightened airport security, these "airport kids" are a thing of the past-but I'm pleased to report that this dream is still alive.

"Hello," began an e-mail I recently received. "Your magazine rocks!" Now, magazine editors get a lot of letters, and these days most of it arrives via e-mail. But I knew right away that this wasn't a typical letter.

It was from Travis Lathrop, a 15-year-old high school sophomore and student pilot from California who said his five hours of flight time was "not a lot but enough to get me hooked on flying." He said that his parents were supportive of his interest in flying, but that he had to pay for lessons himself-so he and a student-pilot friend launched a business, The Spitshinecrew, to wash airplanes. All their revenue is reinvested in aviation.

"It's kind of ironic that we wash airplanes, and then we pay to dirty them," observes the young entrepreneurs' Web site.

"I had a friend last year who started flight training, and he told me about it. I went and got an introductory flight lesson and just loved it-I've been doing it ever since," Travis told me. "I didn't know you could learn how to fly at my age. When I found that out, I wanted to do it." He took an intro flight in May and intends to solo on his sixteenth birthday; for now, he tries to fly about once every six weeks.

Travis got into the airplane-washing business with his friend, Patrick Pragman. "He washed planes for his instructor, and I went out with him a few times. I learned how to do it, and I liked it. It's work, but at least it's around airplanes." But getting to the airplane to wash it was difficult-one FBO wouldn't let them through its facility to the ramp. "He said if he let us through, he'd be responsible for us." They found another business that would allow them access to the ramp. Later they tried to get airport identification badges but discovered that they were too young. "We would have had to be accompanied by someone over 18 or an aircraft owner."

Alas, Patrick recently moved to Alaska. "He's continuing his training there. He's flying from a dirt runway." Now, Travis is paid an hourly rate to wash airplanes for the flying club where he trains. "I taxi them up, wash them, and taxi them back. As I make [money], I fly it."

Travis lives in Tracy, California, but he currently flies from Stockton, 20 miles away-so his parents drive him to lessons. "Tracy is way too windy. I've got to get a little better at crosswind landings before I start flying at Tracy." He recently transitioned from a Piper Tomahawk to a Cessna 172 and loves the larger airplane.

He watches all the aviation shows he can, searches for information on the Internet, and is a dedicated AOPA Flight Training reader. "It would really be great if I could get a job at the airport-I could be around aviation, and be around different pilots, and learn new techniques." After high school he would like to join the Air Force, and eventually become an airline pilot.

With plans like those, I'll bet that one day soon Travis will be a candidate for a college degree in aviation, too.