Young Eagles Take Flight at St. Louis Downtown Airport

By Carmelo Turdo

EAA Chapter 64 held a Young Eagle flying event at St. Louis Downtown Airport Sunday, taking advantage of a break from the cold and rainy weather plaguing the Midwest in recent weeks. EAA Chapter 64 Young Eagle pilots flew eleven Boy Scouts from the local St. Louis Area Council with three very different aircraft types: Piper Arrow, Cessna 305A/O-1 Bird Dog, and Ercoupe 415E. The flights were staged from the Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum, located in historic Curtiss-Wright Hangar 2 on the west apron. While at the museum between flights, the Scouts also participated in activities counting towards the achievement of the Aviation Merit Badge. EAA Chapter 64, the museum and the Boy Scouts of America have been working together for several years to equip local youth with the knowledge and enthusiasm to pursue STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields, including aviation.

The following photos show the Scouts arriving at the museum, taking their flights, and learning aviation history and aeronautical principles from the museum exhibits with the help of museum President and Aviation Merit Badge Counselor, Mark Nankivil.

 

Special thanks to EAA Chapter 64, The Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum, Boy Scouts of America, West Apron FBO Ideal Aviation and St. Louis Downtown Airport Air Traffic Controllers for making this a successful event.