ALPA Acknowledges Student Pilots at 2013 NIFA SAFECON

ALPA continues to be a proud sponsor of the annual National Intercollegiate Flying Association's Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference (NIFA SAFECON). This year's week-long competition was hosted by The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, May 6-11.

ALPA pilot volunteers manned a booth at the hangar part of the week to provide the collegiate pilots with educational materials and guidance on the profession. Education Committee volunteers FO Stanley Adams (Compass), FO Alice McCormack (ExpressJet), FO David Rowe (Delta), and Capt. Daniel Schultz (Compass) also hosted a pizza forum for close to 250 students on Thursday evening. The hot topic of discussion was the new rules going into effect in August for first officers at Part 121 carriers and how the rules and requirements will affect the up and coming pilots.

On behalf of ALPA, First Officers Adams and Rowe attended the awards banquet that concluded the week and presented the cash award scholarships to the top national pilot and his school, and the 11 regional top pilot winners. Student pilot Carl Black from the Prescott campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University took the National Top Pilot Award, receiving $1,000 for himself as well as his school. The 11 regional top pilots also received $500 awards from ALPA.

Next year's SAFECON will be hosted again in Columbus by OSU.

ALPA Education Committee Hits Triple with ACE Clubs

  The student-led 
  ALPA ACE Clubs
  are well represented as
  the spring semester
  begins at the
  University of North
  Dakota (UND)
  and Embry-Riddle
  Aeronautical
  Universities- (ERAU)
  Daytona Beach and
Prescott campuses. Last week, close to a dozen ALPA Education Committee pilot volunteers kicked off the 2013 spring semester with ACE Club presentations to the aviation students at the schools.

Collectively, over 160 students attended the three universities' evening events. The presentations for the ACE Clubs ranged from "Excelling on the HR Portion of Your Interview: at UND to "Go/No Go Decision Making" at ERAU-Daytona, and "How to Get Hired at Delta" at ERAU-Prescott. ALPA pilots visiting UND also stopped into classrooms during the day to share stories with students, while the ALPA booth at ERAU-Daytona was positioned next to the College of Aviation at the activities fair to promote ALPA and the ACE Club.

The ACE Club in Daytona is in its third year and continually proves to be a successful club. The UND and ERAU-Prescott ACE Clubs budded only last year, with aviation students showing great interest and participation, and the clubs continue to thrive.

ALPA Recognizes Top Pilots at NIFA SAFECON 2012

   ALPA again was a sponsor of this year's
   national collegiate flying competitions, the
   2012 NIFA SAFECON, held at Kansas
   State University May 15-18, 2012.

   Representing ALPA was Education
   Committee chairman Capt. Dave Ryter 
   (American Eagle) and Capt. George Burnette
   (Delta). NIFA SAFECON is a week-long event
   which tests all aspects of the competitors'
   aviation knowledge and flying abilities. During
   competitions, Capt. Ryter hosted an ALPA
   forum which included a discussion about the
   future of the airline profession as well as a question-and-answer session.
  
   Twenty-eight schools competed, with 
   Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-
   Prescott winning the national
   championship trophy. On behalf of ALPA,
   Capt. Burnette presented the Regional
   Top Pilot Awards, including a $500 check,
   to each of the 10 regional top pilots, as
   well as the National Top Pilot Award to
   Prescott's Alex Tamsing.

   The National Top Pilot Award includes a
   check for 1,000 and an additional $1,000
   award to the winner's school. ALPA
   congratulates all of this year's NIFA SAFECON competitors.

ALPA ACE Club Sprouts at UND

ALPA Education Committee chairman Capt. Dave Ryter (EGL) and Capt. George Burnette (DAL) attended the first meeting of the University of North Dakota's ALPA ACE Club in early March 2012 along with the club's student president Kou Omori and other club offiers and members.

The ALPA ACE Club is a student-led organization whose purpose is to promote an attitude of professionalism and a culture of safety among future airline pilots. The Education Committee strives to bring the industry to the students through monthly presentations on various student-selected aviation topics. The first meeting included an overview of the ACE Club's organization followed by questions and answers on a variety of industry-related subjects.

The first Education Committee presentation to the UND ACE Club was held on March 21, 2012. Nearly 40 students gathered for the meeting to hear the pilot representatives discuss, "A Day in the Life of an Airline Pilot." The topic was presented to the students by F/Os Larry Deist, Shannon O'Neal, Pete Strople (all DAL), Capt. Mark Nagel (PCL) and Jann Waldhauser (CAL).

There is also an ALPA ACE Club at Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach, Fla., in its second year.

ALPA Applauds NIFA SAFECON Top Pilot Award Recipients from 2011

Congratulations to David Edmonds of the University of North Dakota, who took top pilot honors at this year's ALPA-sponsored National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA) Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference (SAFECON) at Ohio State University in May 2011. Kudos also go out to Mike Carroll of Southern Illinois University, who placed second, and Matthew Park of the U.S. Air Force Academy, who took third.

NIFA's National Top Pilot Award goes to the pilot earning the greatest number of points in power-off landings, short-field approach and landings, navigation, ground trainer, and preflight inspection and SCAN. In addition, the winner must place fifth or higher in one of these three flying events--power-off landings, short-field approach landing, or navigation. The winner and his or her school each receives $1,000.

The annual SAFECON event is a national competition that brings together more than 300 students from 30 colleges and universities from across the country to develop and advance aviation education, with strong emphasis on safety.

Student Pilots Honored at ALPA Air Safety Forum

This year’s ALPA Air Safety Forum (ASF) took place in Washington, D.C. on August 30-31, 2010. After two days of presentations, panel discussions, and meetings, the ASF closed with its Awards Dinner. During the evening, the Air Line Pilots Association celebrated pilots who have distinguished themselves by their outstanding service or their exemplary performance. Amongst the ALPA pilot award winners were two collegiate aviators who were recognized for their skills and performance in collegiate aviation events. James Pouget of Centennial College in Ontario, Canada is the winner of the 2010 Webster Trophy for the top amateur pilot in Canada (fourth from right) and Sherman Carll, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach is the winner of the top collegiate pilot at this year's National Intercollegiate Flying Association's competition (third from right). ALPA proudly sponsors both events. Left to right, Capt. Dave Ryter (American Eagle), ALPA Education Committee chairman; Capt. Rod Lypchuk, Jazz Master Executive Council vice-chairman; Capt. John Prater, ALPA president; Capt. Brian Shury, Jazz MEC chairman and ALPA Canada Board member; Pouget; Carll; Capt. Dan Adamus (Jazz), ALPA Canada Board president and ALPA executive vice-president, Group C; and Capt. John Sluys (Alaska); ALPA Professional Development Group chairman and ALPA executive vice-president, Group B4.