A Semester in the Life of a MTSU Aerospace Pro Pilot Student

Aviation Academy in Mumbai This week I had the privilege of listening to a flight dispatcher speak in my Intro to Aerospace class. Ryan Engel graduated from MTSU in 2016 and now works for Republic Airlines, a regional airline; though, as Ryan explained, Republic Airlines does not consider itself a regional carrier since they fly outside of the United States. Listening to Ryan was helpful in understanding the behinds the scenes work of Airlines. He explained that the primary purpose of his job is to do preflight planning and monitor weather conditions to ensure safety and efficiency. One of the intriguing aspects of Ryan’s job is the fact that, as he explained, each day is different. I think this is a definite draw to becoming a crew scheduler.             Another interesting point that Ryan made is the fact that his job consists largely of judgment calls. Ryan illustrated this point by explaining how he has at times has had...

Wilbur Wright, American pioneer in aviation, and Paul Zens, famous French flier, preparing for two-man flight in Le Mans, France, September 16, 1908- TIME A month into school and life is starting to get a little more difficult in the aerospace department. I noticed that the first two weeks, and even the third, went by without much difficulty. This was, of course, because I’ve had few assignments due up to this point in my three aerospace classes. However, now in the fourth week, school is starting to pick up and my life is noticeably more hectic. I took my first aerospace test this week in Into to Aerospace and have several more lined up in my other classes. This week I’ve also been working on a few papers which a due soon, two of which are from my aerospace classes. Both papers have been quite interesting and, although from different classes, they are in a way connected. In Intro to Aerospace this week, I had to research and write on what made the Wright Brother’s successful...

Rodgers and McDonald To be honest, this week was not the most interesting week I’ve had thus far. I did have the opportunity on Tuesday to attend an interest meeting for Alpha Eta Rho, which is a coeducational fraternity for MTSU Aerospace students. The meeting included free pizza which was great; however, I’m not sure how I feel about joining the fraternity, though they seem like exceptional people. Perhaps the most exciting thing I learned this week was that of a former MTSU Aerospace student, double majoring in Professional Pilot and Maintenance Management.  Five years ago, Collin McDonald was in the same shoes as I am now as an Honors Aerospace student, particularly as a Professional Pilot major. What makes Collin’s story here at MTSU interesting is what he accomplished for his senior thesis project. This week in class I learned about Calbraith “Cal” Perry Rodgers, who was the first to successfully fly coast-to-coast across the U.S. Collin’s senior creative project was...

My name is Luke Troyer and I am a freshman at Middle Tennessee State University. Ever since I was little, I have had a fascination with airplanes. Growing up around Knoxville, Tennessee in the direct path of air traffic landing at Mcghee Tyson Airport, my interest in aviation was sparked at an early age. Some of my favorite childhood memories were those at aviation museums, gazing at the many airplanes. In my early teens, I collected and flew model RC airplanes. By my Junior year in high school, I was set on becoming a pilot, and that is what lead me three and a half hours west of Knoxville to Murfeesboro, Tennessee. Now, I am purusing my dream of becoming a pilot and am enrolled at MTSU in the Aerospace department with a concentration as a professional pilot. The journey has begun.     

This week I had the opportunity to listen to a guest speaker in my Intro to Aerospace class- a crew scheduler supervisor and MTSU alumnus. What a crew scheduler is I had no idea. She went by the name of J.Q. and worked for Endeavor Air, a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines. I have honestly never given much thought into the complexities of operating an airline and all that is required to get a plane from point A to point B. Having listened to J.Q.’s discussion on the role of the crew scheduler, I certainly have a better appreciation for those behind the scene and not in the cockpit. J.Q.’s job is essentially to schedule pilots on a day-to-day basis. Unsurprisingly, as J.Q. explained, this causes a tension between pilots and crew schedulers. As a professional pilot student, it was very interesting to see the perspective of someone who works with pilots daily- or against as most pilots see it. Seeing all that J.Q. must deal with day in and day out was eye-opening. Being a crew scheduler, and...