Thirty Piedra Vista High School students explored the world of aviation last week through a hands-on STEM event at Four Corners Regional Airport. Activities included flying radio-controlled airplanes, testing flight simulators and learning about airport operations.
The event was part of a national outreach program by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. It aimed to spark interest in aviation careers and connect students with local pilots, mechanics and airport professionals.
Russell Gervase, owner of Community Aerosports, invited Tri-City Record to cover the event. It was organized by Mike Lewis, Four Corners Regional Airport manager, and Milo McMinn, assistant director of CTE curriculum and instruction for Farmington Municipal Schools.
“By connecting our students with the airport and aviation professionals, we’re showing them the real-world opportunities that await right here at home,” McMinn texted while on a deer hunt.
“The opportunities for these young kids today are endless. We don’t know where it’s going to end up,” Gervase, a pilot of 30 years, said.
Gervase and pilots Emily Kloster and Brent Dixon shared basic information about avionics, airplane operation and flight instruction. Gervase introduced the students to a Redbird Flight Simulator. Pilot Steve Gromack offered a flight giveaway.
Maintenance crew members Jon Guinta, Chad Kaiser and Justin Benally discussed the wide range of duties their team handles. Ronessa Brown, FCRA administrative assistant, arranged meetings and developed materials for AOPA school presentations.
“Oh, it’s awesome. It’s amazing to see the, you know, the enthusiasm,” said Kaiser.
“This is really great for the kids to get out here and learn about the airplanes, fire trucks and plows, everything that you do at an airport,” Operations and Maintenance manager Guinta said.
“They look at the airplane and they say, OK, well, then I could be a pilot,” Lewis said. “They also understand and say, I could work on these things and be a mechanic.”
Lewis said he plans to evaluate the success of this first event and expand to more county schools if interest grows. While attending a New Mexico Airport Managers Association meeting, Lewis learned about the AOPA program from one of its representatives.
“One of the things that struck me looking in the data … just like a lot of other fields, there’s less women than men, there’s always a shortage of minority people,” Lewis said, noting they didn’t count Native Americans.
Lewis gave the AOPA presentation after the students arrived from the RC Flying Field, 1615 Ojo Ct., off N.M. Highway 371 (Bisti Highway).
Lewis said the training, offered by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, presents career paths for pilots and technicians. Boeing data projects a need for 2.3 million new personnel, including pilots, technicians and cabin crew.
It gave an overview of the aviation industry as an employer of millions, including civil and military aviation, commercial and general aviation, and government, regulatory and support industries such as aerospace manufacturing and services.
Education and training options include university aviation programs, flight schools, military pipelines, technical colleges, internships and apprenticeships.
Orion Killion, who’s going into engineering, said the experience was “pretty cool.” Learning about aviation fits into his science and math studies, he said.
Danica Danner, a junior, said, “I would say it’s very exciting … we didn’t really know what to expect. And I’m very glad that we’re getting to do all the things we get to do.”
She said the class has “opened her eyes” to the opportunities in aviation. “I think it’s pretty awesome.”
Being a pilot would be “so cool,” Danner said, adding she would love to take a flight soon.
Don Hoel, a freshman, said he’s thinking of becoming a pilot and did pretty good at flying a radio-controlled plane that morning.
Jonathan Madrid, a freshman, said he’s considering a career as a pilot or mechanic. “It’s pretty fun. I enjoyed every moment of it,” he said.
Aaron Mansinas, a junior, said, “It was pretty cool. I’ve never been inside of a plane like this before.” Becoming a commercial pilot is a possibility, he said.
Madeline Trujillo, a junior, said the experience was “very nice, very eventful.” She said it would be cool to become a pilot and instructor.
Brittany Beckner, a career technical education pathways teacher, said, “It’s been really engaging for the students to kind of take what they’ve been learning in the classroom and to actually kind of see that here.”
A flight instructor of two years, Emily Kloster, said, “I knew I wanted to be a flight instructor the first time I flew an airplane alone.”
When she had about 30 hours of flight time, her instructor “was probably more excited for me than I was after I landed. I was just nervous.”
Kloster said she came to learn that being in three-dimensional space was her element.
“So I started off as a scuba diver, and I’ve always been obsessed with, you know, being able to go up and down, side to side all at once,” she said. “Flying is kind of the same thing.”
Kloster, who does a lot of backpacking and hiking, said there are certain areas you just can’t walk to, so “being able to fly over them and see what it looks like is just amazing to me.”
She loves the opportunity to share with students and does career talks at different schools.
“I absolutely love it. So especially because I didn’t actually see a female pilot till I was 18,” Kloster said. “I always thought of it as like, oh, that’s a career for, you know, superheroes. People don’t do that. And then she was just the kindest person.”
The commercial airliner pilot chatted with her, inspiring Kloster to think “this is a possibility for me,” which she did at age 25.
After working various jobs for 10 years, she realized flying was her true passion.
“And the aviation community is the most welcoming and supportive community I have never been involved with,” Kloster said. “Any pilot you interact with is there to help you as much as they can … giving advice. It’s just unbelievable.”