Props and Pistons Event Held at New Spirit Sky Club Raises Funds for Wings of Hope

By Carmelo Turdo

The newly established Spirit Sky Club held their first public event on Saturday. The Props and Pistons Car & Plane Fly-In, a fundraiser for neighboring Wings of Hope humanitarian aviation programs, featured a variety of classic cars, business aircraft, food trucks and cosplay entertainers. The Aero Experience was on site covering the Wings of Hope SOAR Into STEM Fall Session 2, and we joined the students for a brief walk-through of the event. Featured here are a Falcon 900, Cirrus Vision Jet and Lancair Columbia The New Spirit of St. Louis on the adjoining apron as well as the main display area at the Spirit Sky Club complex. 

2026 SOAR Into STEM Fall Session 2: Navigation and Communication

By Carmelo Turdo

High school students from the St. Louis area and neighboring counties participated in the second of four Fall Sessions of the Wings of Hope SOAR Into STEM Program on Saturday. SOAR Into STEM provides opportunities to apply science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills in the context of the Wings of Hope humanitarian aviation mission. Topics covered include Airplane Basics, Mechanics and Engineering, Navigation and Communication and Drone/Flight Opportunities.

In Session 2, led by Wings of Hope Education Programs Manager Lee Ann Nolte and a team of volunteer mentors, the students were introduced to aircraft navigation and communication methods directly applicable to general aviation aircraft. During the session, the students worked through increasingly complex navigation tasks, practiced communicating with air traffic control and honed their stick and rudder skills using flight simulators.

The session's guest speaker was SOAR Into STEM volunteer mentor Jeff Butler. He is currently an instructor with Envision Paragliding, flying a modern aircraft that both Da Vinci and the ancient Chinese would recognize. Launching from high elevations in western states like Oklahoma and Colorado, he has flown cross-country in an unpowered paraglider at altitudes over 18,000 feet. Hs presentation was an excellent extension of the previous week's principles of flight theme.

Volunteer mentor and instructor Cathy Babis was the next presenter, giving an overview of the navigation and communication equipment on general aviation aircraft. From the nearly obsolescent VOR to modern GPS, aviation navigation has progressed significantly over the last fifty years. Babis, a former air traffic controller, also gave real-life examples of communication between aircraft and air traffic control facilities as a valuable preview to the group activity coming later in the session. 

After lunch, the students rotated among four activity stations: Aeronautical Chart Reading, Flight Navigation Exercise, Flight Simulation and Air Traffic Control Communication. Here we feature a short description and highlights of each activity.

Aeronautical charts present a vast amount of information using unique symbology, and attempting to interpret them can be intimidating at first glance. In one of the activity stations, the students identified airports, airspace, towers and other items of interest on a Missouri Aeronautical Chart. The chart legend was the "key" to this exercise!  

Another activity during the session was a navigation exercise that involved plotting a course using scale maps. A flight scenario was proposed, and the students prepared a planning worksheet containing direction, distance and flight time to various destinations. The SOAR Into STEM mentors were again available to assist in the process.

The students also applied their new skills at the desktop flight simulator station. Using the classic Cessna 172 display, they practiced the flight techniques learned in the previous session on the forces of flight and flight controls while employing basic navigation using compass headings and landmarks. 

A unique activity was also included in this session - an Air Traffic Control exercise using a large airport diagram laid out on the hangar floor. The students took turns playing the parts of aircraft and air traffic control during operations around the airport in a scripted scenario. The aircraft were represented by RC Spheros as they landed, taxied and took off from the airport.

The Aero Experience thanks Wings of Hope and all those who contribute to the SOAR Into STEM program. We will have continuing coverage of the upcoming sessions through October and November, culminating in a career fair and flight opportunities.