Leading the way
Texas: in Aerospace
And of course, you can’t talk about the 1980s and America without mentioning Top Gun and everyone wanting to be Maverick.
NASA operations – located there. Ellington is also home to the Lone Star Flight Museum, which is highly recommended.
AviNation: Scott, I know you are a father of five. Any advice for parents to get their children excited about the aviation and aerospace sector?
I took two of my children to the Johnson Space Center a few years back, and they loved the museum, especially seeing the Saturn V rocket.
Dr. Firsing: I’d say watching films like the new Top Gun: Maverick helps, but it doesn’t quite have the same effect as it did for our generation decades ago. My kids, soon ages 12-19, need to be more “immersed.”
I’d also highly recommend parents search for STEM summer camps. I know the Lone Star Museum does one. Often universities located near your house will have camp options, some with an aerospace focus. The camps that incorporate higher fidelity flight simulators are particularly fun.
At home, playing the latest Microsoft Flight Simulator with VR options really exposes kids to flight and aviation in general. On the space side, well-known games like No Man’s Sky help kids learn about planetary ecosystems and mining and using resources. However, getting your children out of the house to do aerospace-related activities is still the icing on the cake. Attending air shows is always impactful. Texas has some great shows, including Wings Over Houston, held in October every year. It’s located on historic Ellington Field, with five of the six military branches of the U.S. Department of Defense – Army, Navy, and Marine Reserve units, Army, and Air National Guard – in addition to the Coast Guard under the Department of Homeland Security, and
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Moreover, flight schools are always happy to take interested youth on discovery flights. Even 15 minutes up in the air will be a very memorable experience for a child. I still remember my first flight, in a Cessna 172, as I’m sure you and your readers do. I recently took all five of my children on a helicopter flight around Las Vegas, which was an interesting experience. You just quite never know how your kids will react. My wife and I learned very quickly that one of our daughters is absolutely terrified of helicopters. She cried profusely and didn’t speak to me for days. However, on the opposite side of the spectrum, our 16-year-old son absolutely loved it. He’s now considering a career as an aircraft mechanic and is strongly considering joining the Air Force when he graduates high school in two years’ time.