SOAR Into STEM Session 1: Principles of Flight

By Carmelo Turdo

Twenty-eight students from St. Louis area school districts participated in the first of four spring sessions of the Wings of Hope SOAR Into STEM Program on Saturday. SOAR Into STEM provides the opportunity for high-school students 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. 

The students gathered in the Wings of Hope hangar on Saturday morning to begin the introductory session covering the basics of airplane flight. The instructor for the session was Robert Powell, Education Director for the Challenger Learning Center of St. Louis, and he was supported by Wings of Hope Program Manager Majd Jmeian and a host of volunteer mentors. We begin our coverage with registration, an overhead look at the activity area and the hangar safety briefing by Director of Operations, Tim Long.

The first project was to construct a foam glider based on a discussion of the principles of flight and basic aircraft structures. Teams of three or four students cut out and identified the control surfaces on the wings and tail and demonstrated the movement of the ailerons, flaps, elevator and rudder as if the aircraft were maneuvering in flight. 

Following the introductory lesson on the basics of flight, Elsa Klarich gave an inspiring presentation on her experience as a bush pilot in Africa and a military UAV operator in Afghanistan. Now living in Tanzania, she flies humanitarian missions for Flying Medical Service in a Cessna 206 to support the health and welfare of women and children in east Africa. She also supports wildlife conservation programs to protect endangered animals such as elephants, hippos and rhinos that are poached for their ivory horns and teeth. This type of flying requires special training for operating out of small, rough airstrips surrounded by mountains and often occupied by large, native animals such as giraffes. While stationed in Afghanistan, she operated UAVs on surveillance and reconnaissance missions under contract for the U.S. military and NATO countries. She is in St. Louis to support the SOAR Into STEM program and receive additional training before returning to Tanzania.

Following lunch, the student teams and volunteer mentors worked together to assemble and fly a more advanced design glider requiring careful attention to construction details and concepts such as center of gravity and weight and balance. During the flight test stage, adjustments to the placement of the external weight and throwing technique were made to produce progressively longer flights. More work with this glider will come later in another session.

The Aero Experience Week In Review: Spring Is In the Air

By Carmelo Turdo

The Aero Experience looks back on another great week in the Midwest Aviation community, and spring is definitely in the air along with the aircraft (and the pollen)! It is now time to complete those winter projects and plan for the summer events that will be here before you know it. This Week In Review post highlights several events in recent days and looks ahead to some of the stories we are preparing for future posts. As always, we thank you for supporting The Aero Experience as we promote Midwest Aviation.

Last July, The Aero Experience was honored to cover the birthday celebration of World War II veteran Mustang pilot Thomas (Tony) Gibbons, who was celebrating his 101st birthday. He was treated to a flight in the P-51 Rosalie, flown by Paul Barnett, and the flight was captured in photos and video by his son Mike Gibbons in the AT-6F Texan chase plane flown by Greg Vallero. The story was published in the current issue of Skylines Magazine from the North American Trainer Association. 

On Saturday, The Space Museum in Bonne Terre, MO unveiled a special donation recently received on loan from NASA - Astronaut Gus Grissom's Ambassador of Exploration Award containing a moon rock recovered by the Apollo 16 crew. Formerly displayed at Walt Disney World Epcot Center in Orlando, FL, the exhibit is one of 35 distributed to museums and universities around the country. Lowell Grissom, the brother of Gus Grissom, is a long-time supporter of The Space Museum and was a speaker at the acceptance ceremony. Photos seen here were provided by Fred Harl who attended the event.

Big River Aviation made substantial progress last week on the major repairs performed on a Piper Malibu Mirage that received substantial damage after leaving the wet runway last June at St. Louis-Lambert International Airport. The aircraft received a new firewall, engine mounts, engine, propeller and overhauled nose gear before being ferried to St. Louis Downtown Airport on Sunday. The annual inspection will be completed there before the aircraft is returned to service.

While at St. Louis Downtown Airport on Friday, we were happy to witness the helicopter solo for Cole Long, seen here with CFI Casey Kroeker from Ideal Aviation. The Guimbal Cabri G2 is used for helicopter flight training in the Part 141 helicopter and fixed-wing flight school.  

On Saturday, Wings of Hope began the current session of SOAR Into STEM at the humanitarian aviation non-profit's world headquarters at Spirit of St. Louis Airport. The 28 high school students will meet each Saturday in April, concluding with Discovery Flights and a career fair at Elite Aviation. Here we have Robert Powell of the Challenger Learning Center teaching basic flight principles, Elsa Klarich speaking about her humanitarian flight experience in Tanzania and the glider construction and flying activity. More coverage of each session coming soon on The Aero Experience. 

Last week The Aero Experience was privileged to interview Sandra Shore, the new Director of St. Louis Downtown Airport. We will have the story and video coming soon, and here are a few photos from our visit.