Sunday, February 17, 2008
She learned to drive a car and fly an airplane right around the same time.
THOMASVILLE, Pa. (AP) — A year ago, Lisa Halsey had never been in an airplane.
But since April, the 16-year-old from Dillsburg has been behind the controls of a Cessna Skyhawk, soaring over the fields and highways of central York County.
Lisa can take wing thanks to Faith Flyers, a new group that aims to help teens who otherwise might not be able to earn their private pilot’s licenses.
“It’s a lot to learn, and it takes me a long time to understand stuff, but Chuck [Stough, her instructor] made it a lot easier for me by showing me things a lot,” said Lisa, the organization’s first student.
The group, working for nonprofit status, was created by Dave Kreitzer, a licensed private pilot, and his business partner, Tim Bussard.
Kreitzer said the demand for private pilots has skyrocketed, with statistics from the National Business Aviation Association predicting “torrid” growth in the profession in 2008.
“I know this opens a lot of doors,” Kreitzer said. “What doors, I don’t know. But if you’re in a job interview and it says on your resume that you’re a licensed pilot, that interviewer will look at you differently.”
But becoming a pilot is pricey, Kreitzer said, and that can keep promising students such as Lisa from pursuing an aviation career.
At the York Airport outside Thomasville, where Lisa and Stough, of Seven Valleys, practice at least three times a week, flight instruction costs about $170 an hour.
Stough said Lisa’s been a terrific student, persevering through tough spots — she was air sick the first several lessons and was nervous when she had to land in the rain for the first time — but she’s on her way. She performed her first solo flight, one of three required to earn the license, in November.
What Faith Flyers provides isn’t necessarily a scholarship, but more of a gift for someone who demonstrates the desire, determination and commitment necessary to be a safe, competent pilot, Kreitzer said.
“If you’re accepted into the program, I will send you to an airport flight school,” Kreitzer said. “You take [the first] five hours [of instruction], and I’ll pay for it. Then we see how you did with your first five hours. If you succeed, there’s more funding. If you don’t, there isn’t.”
In addition to playing saxophone and tuba in Northern High School’s band, Lisa is a member of the Young Marines and hopes to enlist in the Marine Corps. Knowing how to fly before she enlists would be a huge advantage, but flying lessons weren’t necessarily in the budget for her mom, Pat.
Pat Halsey chuckled as she said when she mentioned the program to her daughter, she didn’t expect her to agree so readily.
After all, she’d just dealt with letting Lisa learn to drive. Watching her take off in an airplane she was in control of required a new level of letting go, Pat Halsey said.
She said Faith Flyers has been good for her daughter. Since starting training, “she’s more enthused about going into the service,” Pat Halsey said. “... I think it’s really helped boost her self-esteem.”