Charles Stites

Nine new Able Flight pilots were honored at a special ceremony at EAA AirVenture on Tuesday, July 23rd. They were joined on stage by their flight instructors from both Purdue University and Southern Illinois University along with sponsors whose generous gifts make the program possible.  The nine scholarship recipients trained at Purdue and SIU from late May into July. Seven of the nine new pilots attended the ceremony, including Andrew Daigneau, Jake Robinson, Omar Duran, Natallia Mirashnichenka, Jordan Sprague, Tyler Pugeda and Jake Simmons. Also honored but unable to attend were Ian Azeredo and Tim Riney, Jr.

Pinning their Able Flight Wings were Patrick Sniffen of Cirrus Aircraft (pinning Jake Robinson), Martin Ingram of Muncie Aviation, along with Andrew’s father Judd Daigneau (pinning Andrew Daigneau), Zach Reising of the Blue Seven Scholarship (pinning Tyler Pugeda), Ryan Kelly representing the Mark Hogan Scholarship (pinning Jake Simmons), James Decker of ForeFlight (pinning Natallia Mirahnickenka), and Adam Kisielewski (pinning Omar Duran).

In recognition of his generous support, during the ceremony Zach Reising was honored as an honorary Able Flight pilot, with his wings pinned by his mother and father, Melissa and Jeff Reising. Two of this year’s flight instructors were recognized for their outstanding efforts as Able Flight’s Flight Instructors of the Year. They were David Nelson of SIU and Bobby O’Connor of Purdue.

The Able Flight Volunteer of the Year award (named for supporter Bob Seidel) was presented by Bill Perrone of founding sponsor Perrone Aerospace to Clayton Smeltz, a pilot and engineer who uses a wheelchair. Based on his history of designing adapted controls for his own Cirrus Vision Jet, Smeltz was asked to create  adapted controls for the Vashon Ranger LSA so that two of the aircraft could be used at SIU. He was honored for his exceptional work in designing, prototyping, testing and manufacturing the unique controls.

To read more about the ceremony and to see a gallery of images from the event, check out AOPA’s coverage here. And to see Aero News Network’s video of the ceremony visit here. The section on Able Flight begins at the 2:38 mark.

It has been an outstanding year for the 2024 Able Flight Scholarship recipients with nine new pilots earning their wings. Their wings will be awarded in a special ceremony at EAA AirVenture on Tuesday 23rd at 10am at Theater In The Woods. Everyone is invited to attend this unique event.

Andrew Daigneau, Jake Simmons, Natallia Mirashnichenka, Ian Azeredo, Tyler Pugeda, Omar Duran, Jake Robinson, Jordan Sprague and Tim Riney, Jr earned pilot certificates during an intensive training program at Purdue University and Southern Illinois University between late May and early July.

The pilots will be honored individually at the ceremony as recipients of scholarships provided by ForeFlight, Tempest Aero Group, Muncie Aviation and Cirrus Aircraft. Also being awarded are scholarships honoring Zack Reising (Blue 7 Scholarship), Adam Kisielewski (U.S. Marine Corps-retired) and charity volunteer pilot Mark Hogan.

2024 marks the 14th year of Able Flight’s partnership with Purdue University, and its first year partnering with Southern Illinois University to provide training for scholarship recipients. It is Able Flight’s 18th year of providing full-ride flight training scholarships and aviation career training scholarships. Able Flight has 98 licensed pilots, including several who have earned multiple pilot certificates.

Combining the training experience of a major university flight school, and the unique mission of an aviation nonprofit for people with physical disabilities, Able Flight and Southern Illinois University Carbondale will partner on a joint flight training project beginning this year. In May, five Able Flight Scholarship recipients will arrive at the SIU Carbondale campus, where they will stay in university housing and be trained at Southern Illinois Airport by SIU Aviation instructors during an intensive flight training program as they earn their Sport Pilot Certificates.

Able Flight will select scholarship recipients for training at SIU Carbondale from its pool of candidates and will provide two specially adapted Vashon Ranger Light Sport Aircraft in which the student pilots will learn to fly. SIU instructors will receive factory-provided transitional training in the Ranger. At the conclusion of the 2024 training session, Able Flight and SIU will evaluate the program’s success to build upon it in future years.

Housed in the Glenn Poshard Transportation Education Center, one of the top facilities in the country, SIU Aviation is part of the College of Health and Human Sciences.

“SIU Carbondale has a long and proud history of accessibility for people with disabilities, so we are very excited about our partnership with Able Flight, which shares our values of providing opportunities,” said Robert D. Morgan, CHHS dean. “This collaboration allows us to further develop much-needed pilots for the aviation workforce and to ensure a rich learning environment for our students. We are grateful to Able Flight for supporting students with specialized aircraft and scholarships, and we look forward to Able Flight Scholars joining the Saluki family.”

Morgan added that the agreement fits in well with the university’s Imagine 2030 strategic plan and its pillars addressing partnerships and diversity, equity and inclusion.

Able Flight Executive Director Charles Stites said, “We’re excited to work with Southern Illinois University to create this opportunity for our scholarship recipients. SIU has an outstanding nationally recognized aviation program and world class facilities, and they have whole-heartedly welcomed Able Flight. During their time there, our scholarship recipients will be immersed in flying in a demanding but supportive setting and have the chance to explore opportunities for future undergraduate and graduate degrees in aviation.”

The flight training program will begin in late May and will expand on Able Flight’s long-term partnership at Purdue University which will also take place again this year.