Worldly Aviator

Ashley Leman clearly recalls her first time in a small airplane; it was June 2004, right after her graduation from high school. Inspired by the sight of airplanes that would frequently appear overhead and from family members who were licensed pilots, Ashley walked into the flight school at the Lake in the Hills Airport and signed up. That was the day she took her first flying lesson and it was then that she knew she had found her profession. Her desire to pursue a piloting career took her on trips across the country, and across the globe.

A native of Crystal Lake, IL, Ashley continued to fly from the small airport, earning her private in 2005, and instrument rating in December 2007, both with the same instructor who flew with her on her first day.

In the summer prior to Ashley’s 2008 graduation from NIU in with a degree in Business Administration, she was encouraged to apply for an aviation internship. However, it was not your average after-school program. Ashley was selected from a group of college students across the country to participate in a unique opportunity; a brand-new international internship sponsored jointly by the EAA and EADS Socata.

The interns would be living and working for Socata in France and would get to see some of the local sights, as well as help represent Socata at the Paris Air Show. During her five-week stay in France, Ashley was part of the customer support team for the new TBM-850 and got an opportunity to tour the Airbus production facility.

Currently, Ashley is back home in Illinois and is a student in the CFI Academy at DuPage. She says she is looking forward to building time so she can finally get on to the flight deck and take control of her dream job.

For in-depth coverage of Ashley see below:

Far and Wide
By: Joe La Valle

The aviation career of Ashley Leman, 22, has only spanned a few years, but she has gained experiences most could only dream of. While a student at Northern Illinois University, and a flight student at the Lake in Hills Airport near her hometown of Crystal Lake, Illinois, Ashley was initially reluctant to pursue an internship in her desired field of flight, but encouraged by her school counselor, she applied in February 2007 for a new program offered jointly by the Experimental Aircraft Association, and EADS Socata Aircraft of France.

EADS Socata had partnered with the EAA and Young Eagles to form a transatlantic aviation network. This internship was aimed at college students who were pursuing careers in the field of aviation and were members of the EAA. Despite the application time being almost closed, Ashley said, “it was worth a shot.” During this time, an internship was the last thing on her mind. She said that she was wholly concentrated on her goal of flying, and working hard on getting her ratings.

The award announcement came during the 2007 Sun ‘n Fun Air Show in Lakeland Florida . Then-CEO of Socata Stéphane Mayer along with Vice-President for Business Development of the EAA Elissa Lines selected Ashley, who at the time held a private pilot license, and John Staines from Ontario, Canada, who held a commercial pilot license, from a pool of thirty-two other pilot-applicants. The notification came unexpectedly to Ashley, who at that time was working as a waitress while she was finishing her school term; she listened to a message on her voicemail after work and was, “really surprised” that she had been selected.

Vice-President of Sales and Marketing for EADS Socata Nicolas Chabbert commented that the selection was very hard. Together with officials from the EAA, they expressed how impressed they were “by the high quality motivation letters and enthusiasm of these students for the program [and] are very happy to host them in Tarbes.” [1]

The internship Ashley was about to undertake would take her to Tarbes , France , a small town in the southwestern region of the country. This is where EADS Socata makes its headquarters and where Ashley and John would spend the next five weeks working closely with engineers and support staff on the line of new TBM-850 aircraft.

The TBM-850 is a single engine, turboprop-powered, high-performance, pressurized aircraft. It has a maximum takeoff weight of 7,394lbs, holds six passengers plus crew and boasts a maximum cruising speed of 320 KTAS and a 20-minute time to climb to its FAA certified ceiling of 31,000ft. [2]

Ashley's main responsibility within her department was to work with the customer support team. As this was the first time that Socata had interns, Ashley was moved around her department frequently and performed many tasks. She began working in the parts department before being moved to customer service. Here, she was tasked with developing brochures, creating digital customer presentations, as well as conducting research. She typically worked an eight-hour day with an hour for lunch and said, “The coworkers were great.”

During her time in France Ashley stayed in an apartment in Tarbes , and was able to spend her weekends touring the countryside. The view from her quiet room gave her a grand view of the Pyrenees Mountains -a range that separates France from Spain . When she was not at work, she was able to do some sightseeing of the surrounding area. Ashley toured historic Lourdes and Tarbes, whose monuments, castles and cathedrals have been witness to the history of France from the time of the Hundred Year's War up to the present day.

As part of the internship program, Ashley visited Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris where she received a tour of the control tower and facilities. While in Paris, she was able to spend time at the Paris Air Show as a representative of EADS Socata and was on hand to receive clients and prospective customers. On another day afield, Ashley and John were given a tour of the Airbus manufacturing facility in Toulouse, where they saw up-close the new A-380 line of airliners being assembled.

Ashley's work with Socata culminated with her and John having to give a presentation to the executive board of the company outlining ideas they had for improving the company and aircraft they had worked in close proximity with.

Their work was not finished when they left France , however. Upon return to the U.S. , they were guests of the EAA at its 2007 AirVenture Air Show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and got a chance to recount their experience to the media and aviation community during a press conference with new and current EADS Socata CEO, Jean-Michel Léonard. Léonard said “the 2007 Young Eagles internships were extremely valuable for both the students and EADS Socata, and the company is committed to continuing the program in 2008.” [3]

On the value of internships and scholarships for students of aviation, Ashley “highly recommends” them, saying that they are “good experiences to prepare [students] for the future…a chance to apply classroom knowledge in real life.”

Currently, Ashley has just finished the coursework for her flight instructor certificates at American Flyers in West Chicago, Illinois, and is days away from her checkride. She is looking forward to teaching her first students, but eventually it is the airlines that will be her calling. Her ideal job would be to fly something “big and international”, the Boeing 747-400 was mentioned in particular as being favorite of hers.

When she is not flying, Ashley favors the hobbies of a quiet life, she enjoys playing the piano and loves art and classical literature; her favorite author is Dickens. She had the opportunity to indulge her literary pursuits when, for her senior capstone course at NIU, she composed a thirty-page paper on the inherent similarities between A Tale of Two Cities, and Tolstoy's War and Peace. She enjoys the task of writing, and loves language. She spent eight years studying French, and while she is not yet fluent, her time in country was made easier due to her knowledge.

Ashley is also a current member of Women in Aviation International and looks forward to their next conference, which is being held in Atlanta , Georgia in February 2009. [4] She attended her first conference in Nashville, Tennessee in 2006. She is looking forward to next year's gathering; she will certainly have lots to share.

For more information about aviation scholarships offered though the EAA and Women in Aviation International please visit:

http://www.youngeagles.org/programs/scholarships/internships.asp or http://wai.org/education/index.cfm

1. EADS (2007). EAA and EADS Socata selected Ashley & John for their International Scholarship. Retrieved from, www.socata.eads.net, September 2 nd , 2008.
2. EADS (2008). TBM 850 by Socata. Retrieved from, www.tbm850.com , September 3rd, 2008.
3. EADS (2007). EAA/EADS Socata's International Trainees Complete Their Highly Successful “Young Eagles” Internship . Retrieved from, www.socata.eads.net, August 27th, 2008.

Happy Aloft

Inspired by reading books and stories about air traffic controllers as a child, Conrad Johnson of Atlanta, GA found his path early in life. Originally from Guyana, Conrad got his first aviation job when he was in his teens working for his local airport as an auto mechanic. He recalled his days at the field seeing airplanes in action and said, “I would like to fly one.”

Conrad attended the College of North West London in England to train in auto-mechanical engineering; from there he made his way to the U.S. in 1999 where he settled in Georgia. Due to his background in engineering, Conrad went to work for the City of Atlanta and held supervisory jobs with the police and fire departments, as well as with the Department of Public Safety, where he is currently a mechanic supervisor.

Conrad began his flight training in January of this year and flew everyday that he could, earning his private license at the end of April. Without missing a beat, he began his instrument training and passed his check ride in July. Currently, Conrad is a commercial student and he couldn’t be happier, “I really enjoy the longer flights,” he said as he had recently completed a long cross-country.
Looking forward he said he is looking forward to getting his CFI, from there he would like to fly for an airline or for a cargo company, but for right now it’s first things first.

When asked what he liked best about his flying experiences he could only say, “I enjoy every bit of it!” However, one particular image stands out as his favorite; the thing that really makes him happy to be a pilot is the view from above at night. As the evening transitions into night and the sun sets, that is the moment when he really loves what he does.

Destinations
By Joe La Valle

What is Halloween in Atlanta without the annual Little 5 Points Halloween Festival & Parade? This annual award – winning event hosted by the Little 5 Points Business Association is fast becoming Atlanta’s favorite Halloween tradition and returns this year with old festival favorites and a few "new" surprises!

The festival is October 18-29, 2008 and features live music, street entertainment, outdoor beverage vendors and Little 5 Points restaurant and retail promotions. Naturally there's a Halloween costume contest, outdoor beverage vendors, and the notto- be-missed Halloween street parade, starting at 5pm.

The festival is free and open to the public and is located in and around Findley Plaza at the intersection of Moreland and Euclid Avenues. For more information about the event or to sign up for the parade, please visit the Little Five Points Halloween Festival & Parade website: L5PHalloween.Com

Source: l5phalloween.com

Hurricane Hunters

Initially begun on a dare during World War II, the practice of flying an aircraft into a hurricane soon became a practical way to gather data and track severe weather all over the world. The first person credited with piloting an aircraft through a hurricane was Lt. Col. Joe Duckworth, who flew his AT-6 into the eye of a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico in July 1943. In 1944, the 3rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron was formed to study weather phenomena all over the globe. It became the first department of defense unit to fly into tropical storms and hurricanes; and still is.

Eventually renamed the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, it flew a wide range of aircraft based all over the world. Initially flying war surplus B-17s and B-24s, the squadron also flew the WB-29/50 aircraft (the first aircraft to have the designator of ‘W’), and the only jet to fly into a hurricane, the WB-47. Currently the squadron flies ten Lockheed-Martin WC-130H aircraft and is based at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi.

The WC-130H is able to stay aloft for nearly 15 hours, with the average mission lasting 11 hours. The Crew gathers data for every minute of flight using sophisticated weather observation equipment such as the Atmospheric Distributed Data System (ADDA) and the Omega Dropsonde Windfinding System. The hurricane reconnaissance area includes the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico and eastern Pacific Ocean areas.

The Hurricane Hunters share counterparts within the Air Force Tactical Airlift Division as well as NOAA; each one flying aircraft into hurricanes to gather data for research and early warning.

Sources: hurricane hunters.com, af.mil

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