The WINGS Industry Advisory Committee (WIAC) reports that 10 flight instructors have been selected to receive cash prizes ranging form $500 to $1,500 in the inaugural Paul and Fran Burger $10,000 WINGS Sweepstakes.
While the 2018 sweepstakes was made available exclusively to members of the Society of Aviation and Flight Educators (SAFE) and the National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI), the 2019 Sweepstakes is open to all CFIs and all pilots.
The sweepstakes gives cash incentives to increase awareness and participating in the FAA’s WINGS Pilot Proficiency Program.
The sweepstakes is the result of a coalition of four national aviation organizations: The AOPA Air Safety Institute, the FAA Safety Team, NAFI and SAFE. All agreed to use this opportunity to reinforce each organization’s goals to increase aviation safety by creating a culture of lifelong proficiency training.
Given the WINGS program offers a broad choice of educational and training options, including ASI, NAFI and SAFE seminars, webinars and live broadcasts accessible for completion every year, this would be the right path for the sweepstakes, officials said.
The impetus for the campaign came from the simple fact that nearly everyone in general aviation knows someone who was killed or injured in an accident. And often the worst accidents could have been avoided except for one bad decision or an avoidable situation.
Paul Burger, the founder of WIAC and funder of the sweepstakes said, “More than 20 years ago I personally witnessed a tragedy where the pilot, his nephew and niece and a family friend were killed. Since then I have donated a substantial amount energy, time, and money for GA safety so that fewer friends and family have to have this same experience.”
David St. George, SAFE Executive Director, said “the support of our dedicated CFI community in growing the 2018 WINGS sweepstakes is very exciting and encouraging. One sure fact of aviation safety is that continuous focused learning supplied by the FAA WINGS program makes safer pilots.”
“This sweepstakes is a clever, creative and timely way to bring pilots to an attitude of lifelong learning in their general aviation flying,” added Joe Brown, president of Hartzell Propeller, which is the national sponsor of the sweepstakes. “Combining the vision of these proficiency-driven organizations, and those that support them, will brighten the path to safety. The WINGS program is the foundation of that path and the Focused Flight Review is a complementary way to keep people on it.”
Because of the tremendous success of this initiative, WIAC will offer chances to win the annual $10,000 sweepstakes to both CFIs who validate WINGS phases and pilots who complete phases beginning in 2019 and continuing through 2022.
Access to entering for chances to win will be available through the WINGS sections of FAASafety.gov or directly at the WIAC website, where the sweepstakes winners are listed.