ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Ill. — Saint Louis University’s Flying Billikens will host an intercollegiate flying competition at their aviation science center this weekend.
The team invited students from schools in seven states to the St. Louis Downtown Airport in Cahokia Heights, Illinois.
Saint Louis University Senior Hudson Pettit was one of about 100 students who suited up to take on the sky and put his skills to use on the ramp and runway.
Students participate in short-field landing, which tests the pilot's skill at maneuvering and manipulating the aircraft; a similar power-off landing event; and the message drop to hit a target with a message container dropped from an aircraft at 200 feet above the ground.
Pettit is enrolled in Saint Louis University's aviation program where students can fly within weeks of their freshman year and continuously gather more and more certification throughout each year of the flight science degree program. Aside from the technical components, classes include aviation ethics and law.
“There's like that excitement to be doing it. There's nothing else I want to do. I'm super focused on what I'm doing. Even if it's a short flight around the city. We treat it as if we're going across the country,” Pettit said.
Flying commercial has been Pettit's dream since he was 12 years old after he took an international flight.
“I actually got super nervous. Watched a bunch of videos on it and it kind of sparked my passion and for several years I was doing my own research on it,” he said.
The competition this weekend takes pilots out of the classroom.
Cones and aircraft line the ramp at St. Louis Downtown Airport. These teams need to know how and where to land.
“We (Saint Louis University) want to make safety a priority and work towards the development of these students as they progress through the industry here,” said Jack Schwarz, flight instructor.
The competition comes at a time when airports have struggled to hire pilots and keep up with the travel demand. That shortage has sparked delayed flights and raised costs for passengers. Issues have worsened since the pandemic.
The annual shortage of 8,000 pilots is expected to increase to nearly 30,000 by 2032, according to the Wayman Aviation Academy.
These young flyers hope to be the future.
“These students will not just be peers now but working together in the flight decks, at the airlines, in cargo. Whatever it is," Schwarz said.
“Having that open door and having people already want me even though I'm not hirable by companies until 1000 hours. It's super great,” Pettit said.
If the Flying Billikens score well this weekend, they will advance to nationals next spring.
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