Thursday, December 01, 2011

Donation keeps Florida Tech’s aviation program flying high

MELBOURNE --  Florida Tech's aviation program is flying high, thanks to a donation that will keep their pilots on the ground before hitting the skies.

The school unveiled two brand new flight simulators Thursday. Each will be based at the flying school next to the Melbourne International Airport.

The simulators, which cost $350,000 each, were a gift from a trust fund set up to help out the program.

Student pilots will be able to train safely on the ground before getting in real planes, and using the simulators will save money.

“With a simulator, of course, you don't have to put gas in it,” said Dean Winston Scott. “You don't have to put oil in it. All you have to do is essentially turn it on. So we're able to give the students a very, very valuable training at a fraction of the cost that it would take to do the same training in a real airplane.”

After some fine tuning by flight instructors, the simulators will be up and running in a few weeks.

No comments:

Post a Comment