National program lands in Welland, offers youths free flights, introduction to aviation careers
BY GLORIA J. KATCH Special to the VOICE
They’ve been tagged with the moniker “COPA Kids,” the future stars in our skies. Every summer for the last six years, the Canadian Operator Pilot’s Association (COPA) has been inspiring and introducing youth to aviation by giving them free airplane rides and educational sessions on flying.
On Saturday, between 50 to 60 kids from 12 to 17 got to take a half-hour flight around the Niagara Region from the Niagara Central Dorothy Rungeling Airport. Police and firefighters were invited, so their children could be a part of this learning experience, as a way of saying, “Thank you for your service,” said Jim Morrison, a volunteer with COPA Flight 149.
The free rides are given by local pilots who embark with the children on a tour following the Welland Canal to Port Colborne, zipping along Lake Erie to Fort Erie, and back. The flight takes about 15 to 20 minutes, he said.
The pilots climb to about 2,000 feet.
“When you can see both lakes at the same time, with the boats in the canal that look like model train sets, the children are just amazed,” Morrison said.
The purpose of the program is to introduce kids to all aviation careers. Not all of them may want to be pilots, but mechanics or air traffic controllers. There is a current need in the industry for everything from baggage handlers to airport management and maintenance personnel. Many local flight schools are losing their instructors to big airlines, said Morrison.
COPA has pilot scholarships that take six to eight weeks of training, and the air cadet program even has a free management training course as well.
Next year, Morrison wants to bring “glider kids” from Mountainview, a military base near Trenton, where much of the aircraft maintenance is completed.
Morrison believes there are many people who aren’t aware of the Niagara Central Airport, and would be surprised at the amount of traffic that moves in and out of the field.
When Morrison moved to Niagara 14 years ago, he said there were a lot of things lacking at the airport. Now, he said, the scenario has significantly improved. Many people are transported to Hamilton from the airport via helicopter for medical reasons, and skydiving and flying instruction firms have brought in more traffic.
Unlike Tom Cruise in “Top Gun,” being a pilot no longer requires being an athlete or a genius, as was once thought. According to Morrison, there are not as many “bold, old pilots,” any more.
“You should enjoy the sense of freedom and be adventuresome.”
