Able Flight

Changing Lives Though The Challenge and Freedom of Flight

2016 Able Flight Pilots Get Their Wings

OSH 2016 Wings wide DanielsAble Flight had a full house on stage for our annual Wings Pinning ceremony at EAA AirVenture on July 26th, 2016.  On hand to congratulate the new pilots were family and friends, Able Flight sponsors, and special guest Patty Wagstaff, member of the Aviation Hall of Fame.

Pilots receiving their Able Flight Wings were Chris Sullivan, Johnny Ragsdale, Scott Earley, Shavon McGlynn, Justin Falls, Ethan Daffron, Bernard Dime, and Trevor Denning. Also honored were Shafeeq Moore  who will complete training in 2017, and Sgt. Adam Kisielweski (USMC-retired) who earned his Instrument rating this year with support of a career Flight Training scholarship from Able Flight.  Also  attending were flight instructors from Purdue, and Wesley Major, an Able Flight pilot from the Class of 2012 who is now a graduate student at Purdue and has served as the program’s onsite volunteer coordinator for four years.

 The ceremony also marked the 10th anniversary since the founding of Able Flight in May of 2006. Since July of 2007, Able Flight has awarded over 70 scholarships including flight training and aviation career training scholarships.
 The following pilots were selected as the recipients of named scholarships:
Johnny Ragsdale: Recipient of the Tempest/Able Flight Scholarship: Wings pinned by John and Arlene Herman
Justin Falls:  Recipient of the Shell Aviation/Able Flight Scholarship-Wings pinned by Stephane Cicollela and Paul Royko
Shavon McGlynn: Recipient of the Jet Aviation/Able Flight Scholarship: Wings pinned by Patty Wagstaff
Bernard Dime: Recipient of the Bombardier/Able Flight Scholarship: Wings pinned by Mark Sirbinski
Trevor Denning: Recipient of the ForeFlight/Able Flight Scholarship: Wings pinned by Tyson Weihs and Gus Bustillo
Sgt. Chris Sullivan’s Wings were pinned by Sgt. Adam Kisielewski
Scott Earley’s Wings were pinned by his wife Hyla
Ethan Daffron was honored as the recipient of the Tyrell Rhodes Memorial Scholarship and his Able Flight Wings were pinned by Charles Stites.
Brian Stirm of Purdue University was honored as the 2016 recipient of the Seidel Award given to those who provide outstanding volunteer service to Able Flight. Each year, Brian donates many hours to maintain the training aircraft used in our program at Purdue. Presenting the award was last year’s recipient, Chris Throndsen.
Special thanks to Andrew Ovans and Dick Knapinski of EAA for their assistance with the ceremony, and to Wayne Daniels for the photos.
 

 

Record Setting Number of Scholarships!

Johnny Ragland of North Carolina
Johnny Ragland of NC

In its 10th anniversary year, Able Flight has awarded a record-setting eight scholarships so that people with disabilities can become licensed pilots. The recipients of the 2016 flight training scholarships come from throughout the country and face challenges from a variety of physical disabilities.

This year’s class will train at Able Flight’s program at Purdue University and includes seven people who use wheelchairs due to the effects of injuries, and a young woman who is deaf.

Receiving scholarships are Johnny Ragland and Justin Falls of North Carolina, Ethan Daffron of Indiana, Scott Earley of Florida, Shafeeq Moore of Georgia, Bernard Dime of Arizona, Trevor Denning of Texas, and Shavon McGlynn of New York.

Able Flight’s Charles Stites said, “When I have the pleasure of calling to notify applicants of their awards, I tell them that they are about to embark on a journey that will change their lives forever. Our program is demanding and challenging, and that’s because we work with our partners at Purdue’s Department of Aviation Technology to make it so. When our students become licensed pilots, they know they have earned it.”

This is the seventh consecutive year of Able Flight’s partnership with Purdue, and the graduates of the “Class of 2016” will be guests of honor when they receive their Able Flight Wings on stage at EAA AirVenture on Tuesday, July 26th at 11a.m., just weeks after becoming licensed pilots.

Randy Green: Happily Defying Other’s Expectations

IMG_3390For a man who was born without hands or feet, Randy Green looks at what others may see as challenges as just another opportunity to prove his abilities.  On March 4th, 2016, he added another major accomplishment to his list of aviation achievements when he earned a career-changing King Air 300 series type rating.

In 2015, Randy received an Able Flight Career Scholarship to earn his Air Transport rating (ATP). That scholarship was made possible through the support of ForeFlight. Now with another Able Flight Career Scholarship made possible by the very generous donation of NC-based training facility FlyRight, and with additional funding provided by the TBMOPA Foundation, Randy continues to move up the business aviation ladder.
The King Air type rating is considered  by those who have earned it as one of the more difficult ones to master,  and the more than two week course at FlyRight is demanding, both in the classroom and in their Class D simulator. Randy is quick to note that earning his type rating was considerably more difficult than earning his ATP rating, and the fact that he did both in less than a year speaks to his willingness to put in the long hours it takes to achieve advanced ratings.
Now, this father of two young girls will be in search of an opportunity to use his new King Air rating to continue to provide for his family through his aviation career. He has come a long way from his first hours in the Ercoupe that his late father bought so that Randy and his brother could become pilots. But there’s no doubt that with Randy Green, there are more successes to come.
Our congratulations to Randy on his outstanding achievement!