EAA's Chapter 179 - Young Eagles Quarterly Event, May 2017

EAA's Chapter 179 - Young Eagles Quarterly Event, May 2017

EAA's Chapter 179 - Young Eagles Quarterly Event, May 2017

"The EAA Young Eagles program was launched in 1992 to give young people ages 8-17 the opportunity to go flying in a general aviation airplane." www.EAA179.org.

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On May 6, 2017, The EAA Chapter 179 held their quarterly Young Eagles event at the Double Eagle II Airport in Albuquerque, NM.

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I took Paseo del Norte west, past the neighborhoods, past the open land, until reaching this marker.

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At the marker, i took a right, headed north.

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 Following the windy road, after a mile (? I'm not very good with distances), i saw the tower on the north side of the street. (on my right side)

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I then took a left turn and headed west again, until reaching a parking lot. I parked next to this sign.

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Aspiring young pilots eagerly registered for the day's activities.

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The day's activities included free breakfast for everyone. Around noon, i noticed that the lunch menu was being grilled.

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 These beauties were in full display inside the breakfast hanger.

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These beauties were in full display inside the breakfast hanger.

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These beauties were in full display inside the breakfast hanger.

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Kiddos taking their flight. 

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Other planes on the field taking kiddos on their flight.

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 Picture above courtesy of Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Dave P. and Joe B. are Jr. ROTC teachers at Sandia High School. They brought students to the event. Their program is Air Force.

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Randy Reimer with his plane. Randy is a pilot, GlaStar Builder and is part of the EAA Chapter 179. Randy's plane-builder project took 3 years. He ordered the kit from the factory and this plane came in boxes. The building took roughly 3,200 hours in total. In comparison, a full time job is roughly 2,000 hours per year. April 22, 2017 was the plane's maiden voyage. Randy is retired.

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 The top two pictures and the picture below are inside Randy's plane.

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In the photograph below, notice the sticker to the left on the plane. That is a "Chile Flight" sticker.

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David "Stogie" Otero stands in front of his plane. David is retired. He was an Eclipse Aviation teacher. From "first rivet to first flight, it was 2 years." His plane is not painted, it is covered in vinyl, which is lighter. David is an EAA Technical Counselor and a Young Eagles Pilot.

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 The Chile Flight pilots performed an aerial display that my phone was not able to capture.

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The "Chile's" taking off! Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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The "Chile's" taking off! Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Tylor Hall is a pilot who was kind enough to let me bother him for over an hour. He explained to me the differences between an auto-gyro plane and a regular helicopter. I had no idea that planes could look like this or that they could fly to an altitude of up to 10,000 feet. Thank you Tylor for sharing with me such a wealth of information!

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Gabriel and Arne just landed. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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This picture has THREE pilots, yes three. Arne (the pilot who was kind enough to invite me to this event) is an EAA pilot who just took this young pilot, Gabriel (has an impressive number of logged simulator & flight hours) and his father, Alex. Alex retired from the Air Force. Many of the pictures in this post are thanks to him! 

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Yes, i snuck up on them as soon as they landed. 

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Gabriel's brother Jayden is all smiles enjoying the Young Eagles Event. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

Kiddos on their flights. This is what it is all about!

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Young Eagles Event May 2017. Photo by: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

If you are interested in learning about the Young Eagles' Events, visit www.eaa179.org.

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Interview with one of the kiddos.

If your child is interested in a flight, like the ones at this event, contact the EAA Chapter 179 and they will happily pair you up with a volunteer pilot to take your child on that first flight. You do not have to wait for their next event to take place to take advantage of this amazing program.

Want more? This Monday, May 15, 2017 join us for a day of fun at:

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 Courtesy: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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Courtesy: Alex from TAINMSTEM.

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A Special thanks to Todd Blue and Will Taylor for allowing me to document this incredible event!

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