Youth Aviation Day Offers Flying Fun and Career Opportunities for the Next Generation, Part 3: More Aircraft Displays

 

By Carmelo Turdo and Mark Nankivil

The First Annual Youth Aviation Day, held Saturday at Creve Coeur Airport, offered high flying fun and an opportunity to connect with local aviation organizations in a family-friendly atmosphere. The event, conceived by the Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation and enthusiastically adopted by the airport as a public outreach initiative, honors the Foundation's mission of inspiring the next generation to discover the world of aviation. Visitors to Youth Aviation Day had a wide variety of activities to enjoy, including aviation club exhibits in the Foundation hangar, pedal planes for the younger children, aircraft displays from area businesses, free EAA Young Eagle flights and ride opportunities in the Gateway Chapter Army Aviation Heritage Foundation Vietnam-era Army Huey and Cobra helicopters. 

In this multi-part series, The Aero Experience reports on the many unique aspects of this new Midwest Aviation event in support of the Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation. We thank all of the event sponsors, especially Mungenast St. Louis Acura and Alton Toyota, Team Gateway to a Cure, Schaefer's Hobby Shop, Gateway Flight Training, and those who donated to the Foundation in recent weeks. 

In Part 3, we include more aircraft displays representing a variety of aviation fields. The owners and operators of these aircraft generously volunteered to attend Youth Aviation Day and share their experiences with curious visitors. Here we feature a selection of those aircraft displays located on the southwest hangar complex exhibit area and the helicopter landing zone.

Parks College, St. Louis University

Civil Air Patrol, USAF Auxiliary

International Aerobatic Club, Chapter 61

Commemorative Air Force, Missouri Wing

Gateway Flight Training, Greater St. Louis Business Aviation Association, Greater St. Louis Flight Instructors Association, Southwestern Illinois College 

Army Aviation Heritage Foundation, Gateway Chapter

Ideal Aviation

Air Methods and Survival Flight Medical Transport Helicopters

STL Aviators Flying Club

 

Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum

In Part 4, The Aero Experience will conclude our series with a look at the EAA Young Eagle flights and the Huey and Cobra rides provided by the Gateway Chapter of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation.