Wings of Hope Hosts Fall SOAR Into STEM Session 4: Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles

By Carmelo Turdo

Wings of Hope hosted Session 4 of their SOAR Into STEM Program Saturday at the McClure South-Berkeley High School STEAM Academy. The theme of this session was Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The students were introduced to the world of commercial and military UAVs, designed their own landing pads and flew camera-equipped quadcopters through an obstacle course using an app. Leading the final regular session in this series was Robert Powell, Education Coordinator for Wings of Hope with help from a host of volunteer mentors.

The morning activities began with a presentation by two experts in the field of Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles. Bronwyn Morgan is the Founder and CEO of Xeo Air, a Part 107 UAV services company, and Airversity Drone Academy, a UAV consulting and training company. She is a leading voice in the commercial UAV applications and gave the students insight into the current and future markets for UAV operations. Elsa Klarich, already known here as a humanitarian services pilot based in Tanzania, is also an accomplished commercial and military contract UAV pilot. Her current project is the development of a UAV to autonomously deliver medical supplies in Ecuador. 

After lunch, the student teams were issued their UAVs, the Tello EDU app-based, camera-equipped quadcopter. After the students created their helipads and once communication with the UAV was established, a buzzing swarm took to the air. After a little practice, most of the students were landing on their pads and some made it through the hoops of the course.

Session 4 concludes the formal Spring SOAR Into STEM Program, though there is more in store for this class. A career fair is scheduled for the morning of Saturday, November 12, and Discovery Flights will be provided by Elite Aviation that afternoon (weather permitting). The Aero Experience thanks everyone involved with the SOAR Into STEM Program, and we will continue to support this and other STEM programs throughout the coming year.

St. Louis Aviation Community Sustains Humanitarian Services in East Africa and Central America

By Carmelo Turdo

Wings of Hope, the global humanitarian nonprofit organization based at Spirit of St. Louis Airport, has been serving those in need around the world for over sixty years. "Changing and Saving Lives Through Aviation" encapsulates their mission succinctly as they provide medical relief flights in the U.S. and in cooperation with host providers around the world. Here we highlight the roles that two native St. Louis-area aviation professionals play in the success humanitarian aviation services in East Africa and Central America: Elsa Klarich, pilot and UAV operator at Wings of Hope and Paul Voorhees, Owner of Big River Aviation, based at St. Louis Downtown Airport.

Elsa Klarich is a pilot, UAV operations consultant and Soar Into STEM Program instructor at Wings of Hope. She lives in Tanzania where she flies a Cessna 206 for Flying Medical Service. Klarich holds commercial, instrument and multi-engine certificates and specializes in flying to remote airfields to reach indigenous people groups in their villages. Along with her regular flying duties, she continues to work with Wings of Hope to develop uncrewed aerial vehicle technology for the delivery of medical supplies to remote areas of the Ecuadorian Amazon in South America. It is envisioned that UAVs will provide a lifeline to the villages to supplement the services provided by Alas de Socorro (Wings of Relief) in the region. 

Here we show the Wings of Hope Cessna 206 used for training in the St. Louis area and the Flying Medical Service aircraft in Arusha, Tanzania. 

(Paul Voorhees photo)

(Paul Voorhees photo)

The Aero Experience interviewed Elsa Klarich during her visit to Wings of Hope in April, and she tells her story in this video:

Paul Voorhees, the owner/operator of Big River Aviation based at St. Louis Downtown Airport, has been supporting Wings of Hope and other humanitarian aviation organizations for many years. A pilot and A&P/IA, Voorhees has maintained aircraft from Phantom and Hornet fighter jets in the U.S. Marine Corps to P-51 Mustangs to most general aviation single and multi-engine piston aircraft types in the skies today. Along with maintenance projects for Wings of Hope in St. Louis, Voorhees has performed annual inspections and aircraft maintenance at remote locations including in Nicaragua and this year in Tanzania. Following the annual inspection in June, the Flying Medical Service Cessna 206 is ready for another year of service (see photos from Paul Voorhees below).

In March, Paul Voorhees completed the annual inspection of the Piper Geronimo twin-engine aircraft used to support the Manos de Compasion (Hands of Compassion) Children's Home located near the Bay of Santiago Atitlan in Guatemala. Big River Aviation completed a year-long restoration of the aircraft in St. Louis (2019-2020) and continues to support Director Dave Reichard and his staff as they use the aircraft for regular flights to Guatemala City. Here we feature some photos from Paul Voorhees taken during his visit to Guatemala and a video showing the initial aircraft delivery.