Pilot, 16, takes to the skies

News

July 10, 2010 - 12:00 AM

Rocky Smith garnered his place in Allen County Airport history recently by becoming the second-youngest pilot to fly solo.
Smith, 16, like Miranda Myer before him, is a student with Accel Aviation Flight School.
He took to the air for a few practice landings with his flight instructor, Nathan Smith, the morning of June 26 before his solo flights.
“Finally I get to do this by myself,” Smith said in an Accel press release.
Smith said he wasn’t nervous, “just ready to do it.”
Several relatives were on hand as Smith handled three takeoffs and landings, the typical first step for solo pilots.
Smith, who will be a junior this fall at Iola High School, was inspired by his uncle, a mechanic in the United States Air Force.
Smith has flown a Piper Cherokee and Piper Twin Comanche while studying at Accel.
He plans to take tests to obtain his private pilots license, then continue with his training to fly multi-engine aircraft.
His goal is to attend Kansas State University and participate in the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps, the first step to becoming an Air Force pilot.

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