The Town of Elizabethtown and the Curtis Brown Airport will be hosting an aviation summer camp from June 18th through June 21th at the Curtis Brown Airport from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The camp is open to students in 5th through 8th grades. There will be no charge for this camp and it will be hosted on the Curtis Brown field. 

According to organizer Rusty Worley, Planning Director for the Town of Elizabethtown, the week will be full of fun for the students with excellent Instructors that are currently in the aviation Industry. 

The classes will be interactive and will cover areas such as:

Aircraft Familiarization

Navigation

Weather

Aircraft Maintenance

Flight Characteristics

Drone Flight Rules

Drone Navigation

Future Aviation Job Opportunities

Helicopter Familiarization

Air Traffic Control System

The camp is limited to 30 students, so parents are encouraged to sign up soon. Applications are available on the Town’s website. A completed application and release form should be emailed to campeyf@gmail.com.

The Town is hosting the event with corporate sponsors, Campbell Oil Co, Sovereign Air and the North Carolina Department of Aviation. 

Applications are also open for the ACE Academy hosted by the Fayetteville Regional Airport (FAY). This two-day academy will be held on Aug. 5 and 6 at the Fayetteville Regional Airport’s Fire Training Facility.

The ACE Academy offers middle and high school students an opportunity to get a hands-on, immersive experience in airport commercial areas, air carrier operations, and FAA control tower operations. Students will meet professionals in the aerospace workforce, learn about potential career paths, get an insider’s view on operations within the national airspace system and see firsthand how air traffic controllers manage the skies and ensure  safe flights. 

FAY was recently awarded a $3,000 North Carolina Department of Transportation grant to support the ACE Academy. This is the third year in a row that FAY has been awarded the grant to host the academy for students.  

With Aviation and aerospace professionals in high demand, there is hope that participants will be inspired and explore careers in the aviation and aerospace field once they complete the

 academy.  

“We want to ensure we fill the aviation pipeline. Airports are suffering right now with the national pilot shortage. Solving this problem is not an overnight task, however, we can work

 to backfill the loss overtime with FAY’s ACE Academy,” Interim Airport Director Deontae Watson stated in a press release.

The deadline to submit ACE applications is June 7 at 5 p.m. Participants will be selected for the camp on a first-come, first-serve basis. Call 910-433-1160 or email Airport@FayettevilleNC.gov with questions. Online applications are available at: FlyFay.com/AceAcademy.