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Umatilla Aviation Club Celebrates Plane Construction

    A landmark event occurred just before the news cycle was swept up in Hurricane Milton's imminent arrival.  On Saturday, October 5, youth aviation celebrated a historic milestone at the Umatilla Municipal Airport, where the Experimental Aircraft Aircraft Association, the City of Umatilla, and the Umatilla High School aviation club celebrated the completion of the construction of an RV 12IS.
    The plane has been constructed over the course of the last 4.5 years, with EAA volunteers leading area high school-aged students in the construction of the plane. At an estimated cost of $100,000, the project was supported by the Lake County Education Foundation, with EAA and area resident supporters providing additional support.
    The project was undertaken to teach a variety of aviation skills to young people, some of which have since graduated and moved on to other pursuits.  New students coming into the program took up the project as they were in high school, with seasoned adult volunteers stewarding the project along the way. 
    “The foundation provided around 60% of the funding,” said Ken Jordan, who leads the EAA program at the airport.  “They have been very supportive.”
    The City of Umatilla also supports the program by providing space at the airport for the plane to be housed during the project. The city also provides space at the airport for a flight simulator that is used by the students.
    “The city… they support us 100%,” Jordan said, noting the city’s additional support of the quarterly Young Eagles event that provides free flights to young people. The city was also a part of creating the aviation program at Umatilla High, as city manager Scott Blankenship looked to leverage the city’s airport, which is just a few blocks away from the high school, as a tool to grow interest in aviation among young people.
    “That’s our goal,” Jordan said.  “Get young people involved.”
    Today, the club features around 10 members, and several were on hand on October 5 to join the celebration, but to also get started on the next project.
    Rather than resting on its laurels, the club has instead taken the money made from selling the plane to purchase a new project, a Zenith 750 Cruiser.  It was delivered and unpacked as part of the October 5 event.  The hope and expectation is that the aviation project can now operate in a self-funding way, with each plane project producing the funds for the next, and students always having a plane to work.
    “That’s the goal,” Jordan said, while providing statistics showing the program’s growth and stature at Umatilla.  Jordan says the Umatilla EAA chapter is number one in the state of Florida for flights provided to young people, and in the top five nationally, with well over 1,000 flights given in the last four years.
    The RV was due to have its first flight during the event, to be piloted by professional pilot and airport fixture Michael Lengemann.  However, while the plane was cleared by the FAA for flight, there were some outstanding insurance items to handle, and Lengemann was to get some seat time in another RV at the airport before soloing the new plane.
    But the lack of an actual flight did little to dampen the enthusiasm at the event, with aviation supporters by the dozens coming to enjoy the morning event.  Many stepped in to help unload the parts of the new plane, which were sorted and prepped in anticipation of the new project.
    “It’s really pretty cool,” said Blankenship of the program’s growth and success.  “Aviation programs are growing around the county now, but it started in Umatilla.”