The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Reaching new heights
High schoolers building airplane piece by piece
MIDDLETOWN — The sky is not the limit for a select group of Middletown High School students who are constructing an airplane they will eventually have an opportunity to pilot themselves.
There are three aerospace classes offered at the high school: Drone and Flight Science, Aerospace Design, and Mechanical Technology. Students enrolled in these courses have the option to help work on a larger project — building a real, working plane.
Stephen Socolosky, who coteaches those courses along with Paul Pelletier, said that between 20 and 30 students have been involved with the project since it began last year — and that number is growing. “We have quite a few students interested,” he said.
He is a licensed pilot and the president of the Hartford chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association.
The project ties in perfectly with the program because students learn engineering and mechanical operations, practice their problem-solving skills, get handson experience, and can even earn college credits, he added. It’s a great experience for these students to see it all come together.
“That’s the best part,” Socolosky said. “They’ll get to see it fly.”
Junior Doris Biney shared that her favorite aspect is helping build something that actually works in real life. “Seeing everything come together, it’s like, ‘Wow. I helped make that.’”
The Van’s RV-12iS, a two-seat, all-metal plane, best fits in the light sport aircraft category. Parts can be bought in separate kits for a total cost of about $80,000.
So far, all the parts have been purchased, students have taken inventory of all the supplies, and at least one part — the vertical stabilizer — is done.
Because the pandemic forced students to learn from home for most of the year, progress on the project was slow, but some, including sophomore Seth Varrato, continued working for about a week after the academic year ended.
“We had to have at least one part done,” Varrato said.
He said that time has been the most difficult aspect of this project, especially with the hybrid learning model last year. “We’re so restrained by our class periods,” Varrato said.
With a return to fully in-person learning this year, the students expect more progress will be made, but they understand it will not likely be fully complete until they graduate. “You can’t rush the process,” Biney said.
The next portion is the rudder, which, she estimates, will take at least a month to construct.
Senior Justin Almeida knows the project will not be finished before he graduates, but understands that it is vital experience for his future, he said. Almeida has begun looking at colleges, and plans to study mechanical engineering.
“When I saw this class, I
signed up right away,” he said.
Daniella Ikonn, a junior, said that this program is good for anyone interested in aerospace and engineering. “I was interested in learning all aspects of engineering and this program stood out. No other schools have programs like this.”
Through this project, Ikonn has found she is especially interested in the coding aspect. She even took home one of the manuals to learn more in her spare time.
Socolosky said that exposing students to new skill sets and interests could help them in a future career — one of the main goals of this program.
“I have an opportunity to show kids real-world jobs you can get,” he said. “Aviation is booming and it’s not going away.”
The school district has been very supportive as well. “I think they’re really invested here,” Socolosky said.
The students that work on the project will also have the opportunity to fly the aircraft once it is completed, he said.
Some students have already gotten a head start on this by participating in the EAA’s “Young Eagles” program, which exposes children to the world of aviation.