Events and Air Smiles Days
Aviation Scholarships 'Class of 2011' Graduates with Flying Colours
Scholarship report courtesy of www.cotswoldairport.com
Young people taking part in Cotswold Airport's record-breaking 2011 Aviation Scholarships programme have graduated with flying colours. And for the teenagers who took part in the scheme, most already have their hearts set on a future career in the aviation world.
Ten budding aviators were selected from more than 80 applications - a record number for the scheme, which is now in its fifth year. The programme, which is aimed at teenagers aged between 14 and 18, is funded by Cotswold Airport owner and Chief Executive Ronan Harvey and run in conjunction with the airport-based charity fly2help and flying organisations on the site. The scholarships, which give students a taste of flying, as well as aviation engineering and operational duties, have already helped change the lives of dozens of young people for the better.
And this year's class say their own experience of the scheme has had a major impact too.
Lily Forward, 18, from Devizes, who wants to go on and study aeronautical engineering at university, said: "It's opened up so many doors and given us all a different perspective on the aviation world. The flying has been great but we've also learned so much more about the technical side. We've visited places like Rolls-Royce and our trip to Airbus was really insightful".
Rory Sanderson, from Stroud, who won the scholarships' Propeller Award for being the 'most improved' student, said that during the programme he had been "bitten by the aviation bug". The 15-year-old said: "I've always been interested in engineering and my dad used to take me to a lot of airshows when I was younger. I also joined the air cadets and my time on the scholarships has definitely strengthened my desire to go into aviation. When I saw it in my local newspaper it was a dream come true. It's been so useful seeing the engineering and ground crew side of it, as well as the flying".
The scheme invites applications from young people in Gloucestershire and Wiltshire and, during the scholarships, students are able to experience flight, receive tuition at the airport's aviation ground school, see at first-hand the work of air traffic controllers, flying instructors and engineers and receive expert guidance from aviation professionals.
This year, in addition to Rolls-Royce and Airbus at Bristol, the students enjoyed visits to RAF Brize Norton and the Lufthansa Resource Technical Training ground school, which is based at Cotswold Airport.
The programme has already helped change the lives of many young people, and former scholars, such as 19-year-old Joshua Dutson, have already hit the headlines. Joshua, who lives in the Cotswolds, said the scholarships helped him turn his life around after he became seriously depressed as a result of bullying at school. He now hopes to embark on a career as an air traffic controller.
Meanwhile, fellow former scholar Barney Rowland managed to fly solo several months before passing his driving test, after spending time on the programme, and has since achieved his Private Pilots' Licence (PPL).
Airport director Suzannah Harvey, who presented the students with their certificates, said: "This year's students were of the highest calibre and we are sure we'll be seeing more of them in the years to come. To give young people the opportunity to take their first steps on a career path in aviation is very rewarding indeed and everyone involved with the scholarships is absolutely delighted the students appear to have taken so much away from their experience".
Charity Manager for fly2help Sue Bennett added: "The students were a joy to work with and it was fantastic to see the enthusiasm and dedication they showed throughout the programme. We seem to get more and more interest each year so it certainly shows how well respected the scholarships have now become".
Planning has already started for the 2012 Cotswold Airport Aviation Scholarships.
Applications will be welcomed between 1st October 2011 and 31st January 2012, and the programme is scheduled to run at Easter 2012.