Elite Flight Academy

👨‍✈️ PILOT CAREER PATH: Airline Pilot >>> From your first solo in a single-engine airplane to flying passengers across the globe — this is where dreams take flight. Airline pilots start at regional carriers, then move up to the majors, often with international routes. 🌍
👉 Your journey to a rewarding career flying for the airlines begins with one step... call us to begin your flight training: (800) 669-0250.

Elite Flight Academy
Davidson County Executive Airport
1673 Aviation Way
Lexington, NC

FAMOUS PILOT FRIDAY: Jacqueline Cochran

Jacqueline “Jackie” Cochran became the first woman to fly faster than the speed of sound and, at the time of her death in 1980, she held more speed, altitude, and distance records than any other male or female pilot in aviation history. Included in these are the eight world speed, altitude and distance records she set in 1961 in the Northrop T-38 Talon.

Though she was approaching 30 when she began to fly, she quickly made up for lost time, earning her license in 1932, after only three weeks of lessons.

On May 18, 1953, Cochran took off from Rogers Dry Lake, California, accompanied by Air Force Captain Charles “Chuck” Yeager, who six years earlier had been the first man to break the sound barrier. In an F-86 Sabre plane, borrowed from the Royal Canadian Air Force, Cochran surpassed Mach 1; over the course of her flight, she averaged speeds of 652.337 miles per hour.

She was also the first woman to reach Mach 2, the first woman to take off from an aircraft carrier, the first woman to make a blind instrument landing, and the first woman to be inducted into the Aviation Hall of Fame.

Learn more at https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/meet-jacqueline-cochran

FAMOUS PILOT FRIDAY: Amelia Earhart

On July 2, 1937, American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart disappeared while flying over the central Pacific Ocean near Howland Island. She was making an attempt at becoming the first female to complete a circumnavigational flight of the globe, accompanied by navigator Fred Noonan.

In 1932, piloting a Lockheed Vega 5B, she made a nonstop solo transatlantic flight, becoming the first woman to achieve such a feat. She set many other records, wrote best-selling books about her flying experiences, and was instrumental in the formation of The Ninety-Nines, an organization for female pilots.

On October 22, 1922, Earhart flew her Kinner Airster biplane to an altitude of 14,000 feet, setting a world record for female pilots. On May 15, 1923, she became the 16th woman in the United States to be issued a pilot's license ( #6017) by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale.

For more information on Earhart’s achievements, visit https://www.ameliaearhart.com/biography/

SPOT THE AIRCRAFT!
Think your aviation knowledge is strong enough to identify this aircraft from only a partial view? Comment your guess below!
Correct answer coming tomorrow. 👀

FAMOUS PILOT FRIDAY: Tim McGraw

Not only is Tim McGraw a world-famous country star and actor, he's also a pilot!

As a Cirrus owner, McGraw has become the celebrity spokesperson for several of the Cirrus Aviation promo videos. “I love being up in the air, not having to think about work, not having to think about records, not having to think about movies, not having to think about who I didn't call today. When I am up there, I don’t have to worry about any of that stuff,” he said. “Flying for work is very rewarding because it’s always fun to have a mission.”

In 2019 he piloted a Cirrus Vision jet to attend Kentucky’s country music and bourbon festival, “Hometown Rising.” His custom Cirrus includes embroidered seats and a “Faith” sticker in the window.

To see more, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aleXQnc6hpI

AIRCRAFT REVEALED: F/A-18 Super Hornet. Did you guess correctly from yesterday’s post?

Quick facts:
> Entered Blue Angels service: 2021
> Manufacturer: Boeing
> Top speed: ~Mach 1.8 (~1,190 mph / 1,915 km/h)
> Engines: 2 × General Electric F414 afterburning turbofans
> Wingspan: ~44 ft 8 in (13.6 m)
> Length: ~60 ft (18.3 m)
> Demonstration speeds: Approximately 120 mph to 700+ mph during shows
> Unique capability: Larger airframe and increased fuel capacity compared to earlier Hornets
> Home base: Naval Air Station Pensacola
> Nickname: The Rhino

Interested in becoming a pilot? Call us today at (800) 669-0250! ✈️