Eight Gregory School seventh graders took to the skies on Saturday, March 8. The students, all part of our fall-semester multi-session Wright Flight Exploration, participated in Fly Day, the culmination of the Wright Flight program in which students get to take the controls and fly a real plane.
“Last fall, we started learning about the Wright Brothers and how aviation developed over the course of 100 years. Next thing I knew, we were up in a Cessna looking down at a copper mine from 4,000 feet!” - John Carr '30
Wright Flight was started in Tucson by Lt. Col. Robin Stoddard, an Air Force A10 Fighter pilot, back in 1986 to provide a flying experience to interested kids that one day might want to become pilots themselves. The program inspires students by applying the crucial characteristics of pilots–a combination of aviation knowledge and the personal traits of responsibility, trustworthiness, and leadership. This gives Wright Flight the tandem objectives of introducing middle school students to aviation and teaching and reinforcing the concepts of personal responsibility and service to the community.
In the series of ten classes, students learned about the history and mechanics of aviation and the major players in the industry over time. Students also learned the basics of responsible pilot techniques and how to look after their plane. Simultaneously, they committed to maintaining good grades, modeling the leadership traits of a pilot, and serving the community. (The group’s recent plan to provide Middle School window washing and flower potting service had to be postponed due to rain.)
“It’s fun and energizing to be a part of the students' interest in working towards a worthy long term goal and then to realize it,” TGS teacher and Wright Flight advisor Mr. Kelly Thompson said. “It’s great to see them expanding their world through the study of aviation, doing something different and challenging, and working with their peer group on a common goal.”
The Gregory School Wright Flight students also get the opportunity to interact with a variety of current and retired pilots. Mr. Jason Dickinson (brother of our own Coach Dickinson), a retired Air Force F16 pilot who now flies for Delta, came to campus and talked to the students about his personal journey in aviation. And on Fly Day, the students worked with a variety of volunteers, most of whom are retired military pilots, to realize the goal of actually flying a plane for a few minutes.
On Fly Day, students met up at Ryan Airfield southwest of Tucson and received an orientation from the volunteers. Each student then got to board a Cessna with a volunteer pilot. Once they were in the air, they got to take over the controls and fly the plane!
“Last fall, we started learning about the Wright Brothers and how aviation developed over the course of 100 years,” John Carr ‘30 said. “Next thing I knew, we were up in a Cessna looking down at a copper mine (Duval mine) from 4,000 feet!”
Wright Flight will be an Exploration option for members of our class of 2031 in the fall of 2025.
