AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2020 - 39

YOU CAN FLY

|

Celebrating resiliency
in a time of turmoil 

FLY WITH
TODAY'S
BIGGEST
COUNTRY
HITS.

Changes to Flight Training Experience
awards focus on community 
B Y J U L I E S U M M E R S WA L K E R

FLIGHT SCHOOLS and flight instructors
across the country have been vying for
top status in the annual AOPA Flight
Training Experience Awards for several
years, hoping their students will highlight them in an online survey. The awards
are the Michelin stars in a flight school or
instructor's pedigree, a "Best" designation
on their doorway or website denoting a
Zagat-worthy location. But, like so much
of the world in this COVID-19 climate, the
awards are not the same this year. Many
schools have had to close their doors and
many instructors in states with quarantine
rules cannot fly with students.  
However, what has not changed is the
passion and resiliency of the flight training community and so, while there will
not be an award ceremony or top status
this year, there will be a celebration of the
flight training community. The AOPA You
Can Fly program announced the Flight
Training Experience Project in May. 
"We believe it is important to celebrate
the value and significance of the flight training community in this difficult time," said
Chris Moser, AOPA senior director of flight

How to participate 
Share your stories in a video of 45
seconds or less on social media with
the hashtag #FTEProject by July 31. 
Show how you, your instructor, or
your school uses aviation to inspire
others.  

training education. "With the project, we
will focus on the community, highlighting
the inspiring stories of the flight training
community, which has come together in
support of one another to overcome the
obstacles of climate and economy, and
proved resilient in the face of adversity." 
The Flight Training Experience
Project is soliciting video stories from the
flight training community that show the
people who inspire and demonstrate the
resilience of the community. Schools, students, and instructors are asked to record
a video of 45 seconds or less and post it
on social media (YouTube, Facebook,
Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok). Some
of those videos and stories will be highlighted at the annual Redbird Migration
event in October and through AOPA's
news and media channels. 
"Instead of fostering competition, we
believe this is the moment to build community, and we are excited to celebrate
and recognize the vital work of our flight
training community," Moser said.  

Ch.
56

New subscribers get
2 months of SiriusXM
entertainment FREE
with an All Access trial
subscription.

EMAIL julie.walker@aopa.org

Show how your school community
has demonstrated resilience in the
face of adversity. 

Call 1-877-888-6991
to subscribe.

Show how your school, instructor, or
students have supported the broader
community. 

See our full page ad in this
publication for full offer details.

Show how your flight training community has achieved a goal. 
aopa.org/fteproject 

aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 39
20-9305_AOPA_Ad_r6.indd 1

5/7/20 11:02 AM
http://www.aopa.org/fteproject http://www.aopa.org/pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2020
