For the first time in their young lives, girls from the Boys and Girls Club of South Alabama will experience their first airplane ride. On Feb. 19, the EAA Young Eagles program is taking 80 girls between the ages of 10 and 16 under its wings and into the air. Pilots of the EAA Young Eagles will be at Mobile Downtown Airport-Brookley Field (BFM) from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. offering 45-minute plane rides.
The free plane rides are part of the Boys and Girls Club of South Alabama’s Adopt-A-Pilot program, which is in conjunction with the 2011 Air Race Classic coming to Mobile in June. The six-month program is designed to expose young girls to aviation, careers in aviation, and aviation education. “None of girls have flown in a single engine plane and only about 25% have ever flown on a commercial jet,” said Boys and Girls Club of South Alabama Director of Operations Inger Anderson.
The United Parcel Service (UPS) will also give tours of a cargo Airbus A300 jumbo jet. The tours coincide with the “Centennial of Women in Aviation.” The tour will begin at 8:30 am at Brookley Field. It will be a full day of aviation activities. The girls will get a flying certificate, a log book and a picture with their pilot and plane.
For more information: 251-725-1794
