Taking flight; Children get a chance for free airplane rides
Published 10:50 am Monday, June 29, 2015
Kaylee Sorensen, 14, puts on the headset in preperation for takeoff Saturday during Young Eagles Flight Rally at the Austin Municipal Airport.– Jenae Hackensmith/jenae.hackensmith@austindailyherald.com
Mikaylah Gunderson, 10, and her brother Spencer Hoogenraad, 8, got the chance to see Austin from the sky on Saturday.
They were two of the many area children ages 8-17 who got the chance to fly through the sky for free at the Austin Municipal Airport during the Young Eagles Flight Rally.
“We were [flying] around, we saw pools,” Mikaylah said. “And it was cool that we could talk to each other [with headphones].”
Kaylee Sorensen, 14, left, Sophia Buntrock, 12, and Izaak Farrell, 12, get ready for takeoff Saturday during Young Eagles Flight Rally at the Austin Municipal Airport.
The event was hosted by the Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 386, and participants were able to go on a 15-20 minute flight and learn how airplanes work. Mikaylah said the plane went really fast, but she had fun and wasn’t scared. This was her third time being on a plane, but she didn’t really remember the other trips since she was younger.
Her brother Spencer was excited about learning how the controls worked.
“I got to meet the pilot,” he said, excited.
A plane starts rolling for take off during the Young Eagles Flight Rally at the Austin Municipal Airport.
Both the children were eager to do this type of thing again, and their mom, Jessica Shaw, was glad the opportunity was open to them.
“I really enjoyed seeing them and watching them go up in the air, their excitement,” she said.
After the flight, each participant received a certificate making them an official Young Eagle. They were then entered into the “World’s Largest Logbook,” which is on display at the EAA Air Adventure Museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Rann Varrelman, 8, was also excited about meeting the pilot and learning how the plane worked. Rann took his first airplane ride with his cousin Saturday.
President of the Chapter EAA 386 Pete Kappers hoped the experience would inspire the children to go into aviation someday.
“We’re trying to inspire these kids to maybe peruse a career in aviation, whether you’re flying or a mechanic,” he said. “Anything in aviation.”
The rally was part of the EAA Young Eagles Program, created to interest young people in aviation. Kappers said another goal is to give children an opportunity they might not otherwise have access to.
Since the program launched in 1992, volunteer EAA pilots have flown more than 1.4 million young people.
