Thursday, May 10, 2012

Student lands first solo flight at Watertown International Airport (KART), New York

 
THE WATERTOWN DAILY TIMES 
Cody D. Nichols, 18, of Chaumont completed his first solo flight April 29 in this Cessna.

By TED BOOKER 
Watertown Daily Times

Cody D. Nichols, a senior at Lyme Central School, Chaumont, accomplished a feat April 29 that he’d been dreaming of since he was 7.

The 18-year-old from Chaumont flew a Cessna 172 Skyhawk by himself, successfully taking off and landing at Watertown International Airport near Dexter.

“When I got up in the air, I looked out the window and thought, ‘Wow.’ It was both exciting and nerve-racking,” said Mr. Nichols, who enrolled in a training course offered by Mike Williams Flight School this past winter. He plans to acquire his flight license this summer after logging 50 hours of air time.

Mr. Nichols said the course, which includes a 50-50 blend of coursework and flight time, has been a growing experience. But the most formidable hurdle, he said, is the art of landing an airplane.

“It’s a lot more challenging than I thought it would be, especially when there are crosswinds,” he said. “That’s why we picked a calm day for my first flight.”

Mr. Nichols will enroll in the fall at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, to study environmental biology. Eventually, he would like to use his aviation skills to do independent research at remote locations.

“I’d like to fly into areas with a seaplane,” he said.

Mike Williams Flight School, which has a staff of four flight instructors, can enroll up to eight students in its training programs. Students can start training at age 16, fly solo at 17 and acquire a license at 18. Completion of the program varies, as some students have finished in three weeks and others train for months, depending on their schedules. The cost of the program is $169 an hour.

“I try to make the course fun for students,” owner Michael C. Williams said. “There is reading and coursework, but students learn by flying the planes.”

Graduates have used their licenses in a range of professions, working for police and government agencies and as pilots for commercial airlines, Mr. Williams said.

Source:  http://www.watertowndailytimes.com

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