The IHS aviation club were once again be on the road for yet another field trip! This time it was to Beaver County Community College to tour the aerospace facility as well as the air heritage museum. This trip has been a work in progress since the group returned from their last field trip which was to Penn Tech in Williamsport, PA and the Piper Aviation Museum in Lock Haven, PA. Nathanael Arthurs and Mr. Puskar have both worked very hard together to reach out to seek prior approval from the school district for this trip to commence. Enough money had to be raised and with the help of sponsorship this field trip was able to occur.
It was a very fun and interactive experience for the teachers as well as all the students involved in the IHS aviation club. After a 2 hour drive up to Beaver, students were able to get involved in many educational activities and talk to very interesting people. Upon first arrival, students actively participated in a few photographs taken to commemorate the field trip. They were then let inside and were greeted by a few of the lead instructors as well as the dean of the aerospace program. They first spoke about what their program was about how everything operates. After which, it was on with the rest of the tour.
Students were then led to the simulator area, where they were able to get actively involved in a few of the simulators on campus. Most notably was the Redbird Flight Simulators which operate in full motion and have a fully interactive instrument panel that operates exactly the same as it would in a real airplane. Most students seemed to enjoy this experience as well as the teachers and staff involved. After which, students were able to get a brief introduction as well as a small tour of the Air Traffic Control program. Shown were aeronautical charts, simulators, and radars meant for showing traffic. In fact, the students run the real Air Traffic Control tower located at Beaver County Airport which students also got the opportunity to go up and explore.
