LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – The Shirley Martin Powered Flight Academy is attracting students from all over the U.S.—from Texas to California to North Carolina.
“I’m a cadet from Houston, Texas… I’m from Dallas… I’m a cadet from San Diego… I’m a cadet from Lubbock… I’m a cadet from North Carolina… I’m a cadet from Colorado and I’m really enjoying the flight academy,” cadets said.
The academy trains cadets in essential flight maneuvers, including straight-and-level flying, precision takeoffs, and emergency procedures.
Cadet Albert “Swaby” Wyatt said attention to detail starts on the ground—before the aircraft ever leaves the runway.
“You want to make sure you know fire extinguishers in the green, carpet’s cold, things like that. And then once you do your run up, which you’re making sure your power systems are good and your engine can actually get up to speed,” Wyatt said.
Wyatt said the Civil Air Patrol program can be demanding because of the volume of tests and training, but he believes the hard work pays off—especially when cadets earn the chance to fly solo.
“The first few months is a little bit of work with tests and drill tests and leadership tests and aerospace tests and your orientation rides and things like that. But once you get that stuff out of the way, it really comes a little bit smoother,” Wyatt said.
“These students at the National Flight Academy aren’t just learning about aviation with the Civil Air Patrol—they’re living it,” a cadet said during training.
For Wyatt, flying solo was a milestone he won’t forget.
“It was really a peaceful experience, and I actually was able to calm down enough to think, wow, I’m actually flying an airplane by myself. It was probably the greatest feeling in the world that I’ve had up to this point,” he said.
Not every cadet starts out with the same confidence. Cadet Maximus Ibram said self-doubt crept in at times—especially in a new environment.
“I kind of was doubting myself a little bit because I thought like, wow, because this is a bigger airport. It’s a little bigger than where we’ve done some practice. So I was like, oh, I don’t know if I can,” Ibram said. “But him having confidence in me and some of the other pilots having confidence in me, it really made me sure that I was able to do good.”
Dana Gray, a lieutenant colonel who has volunteered with the program for 30 years, said the goal is giving cadets opportunities they might not otherwise have.
“That we’re giving them opportunities that some may not have,” Gray said.
Wyatt said he hopes future cadets see the academy as a chance worth committing to.
“It’s a great program. I definitely highly recommend it. Once you join, commit to it. It’s a great program. I committed to it when I was 14 and it has changed my life dramatically,” Wyatt said.
The cadets are set to graduate Saturday.
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