LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A pathway program at Breckinridge County High School is encouraging kids to keep their heads in the clouds.
For the past three school years, Paul Rotramel has led the Flight and Aeronautics pathway program.
The program structure is similar to other classes in that it also contains written work and group discussions, but three virtual reality flight simulators give students the chance to take their lesson plans beyond the books. One of the simulators is the same technology used by cadets in the U.S. Air Force.
Breckinridge County High School student Wesley Horsley coaches peer through virtual reality flight simulator.
"They actually go through all of the private pilot maneuvers. So they learn step-by-step through tutorials, through videos, through written briefings and the scenarios that are set up in our software," said Rotramel.
Rotramel said he was asked to pilot the program three years ago. The teacher said he lived just a few minutes from an airport when he was younger and "grew up with this love for airplanes."
Teacher Paul Rotramel piloted the pathway program three years ago at Breckinridge County High School.
Since then, Rotramel has gotten his private pilot license and takes trips around the country to explore iconic sights, like the Grand Canyon.
Rotramel hopes his class helps the younger generation also develop a love for the skies.
"We live within an hour of the largest air-freight facility in the world, but we don't see a lot of airplanes around here. So, a lot of our students have never considered that as a potential career pathway," said Rotramel.
The class started in the 2020-2021 school year with about a dozen students. Now, around 60 kids are enrolled in four different classes for the programs.
"We've got two different intro classes for freshman, we've got a sophomore class and we've got a junior class," said Rotramel. "The freshman year of this class is very much about, 'Here's how aviation affects your daily life even if you don't realize it and here's why this is a really cool job. About the time you're going to be entering the workforce in 8 to 10 years or so, the world is going to need 800,000 pilots at least.'"
In addition to the simulators, students also learn about important systems on a plane such as the hydraulic and fuel systems. Students also learn how to read maps and discuss emergency scenarios and the role of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Junior Madeline Taul and senior Wesley Horsley are among those who have been with the program since the beginning.
Both said they didn't know much about airplanes when they first signed up, but now see themselves as pilots in the future.
Junior Madeline Taul practices on virtual reality flight simulator using the same technology as cadets in the Air Force.
"I actually was not interested at all in aviation. I heard the simulators were the same used in the military and I thought you know what that's kind of cool," said Taul. "Once I started, I got really into it and hopefully I'll have a career in it later. I want to be a professional pilot for an airline or a helicopter pilot."
The plane the students learn to fly first is a Cessna 172; the same aircraft most would fly when taking their exam to earn their private pilots license.
Both Taul and Horsley said they've taken what they've learned in class and applied it in a Cessna in real life while taking flight courses.
"I knew the basics. I knew what the throttle was, I knew what the yoke was, I knew about the rudder and the brakes," said Taul. "It made it more fun because I wasn't stressing over, 'Oh no, did I hit the propeller not the throttle.'"
"Now that I've been here, I feel very prepared to go up and fly and take tests and what not. This class has helped me a lot because I actually went and took my written test a few weeks ago," said Horsley. "Being able to be here in the classroom instead of just studying on my own really helped me go in and take the test because it felt like more of just a classroom setting."
Horsley said the real-world test, "felt just like I was taking a test for Mr. Rotramel."
Taul practices a landing approach using virtual reality flight simulator.
Rotramel says Horsley's comfort level with the real-thing is what his lesson plans aim to accomplish.
"What we're really hoping to see really see is as our students graduate from this program and get time in an aircraft, everything comes more naturally because they've done all of it before," he said.
By the time students graduate, the Flight and Aeronautics Pathway Program will have given them the skills and knowledge they'd need to take the exams to earn a private pilot license.
Rotramel says the school was the first in the country to use the military-grade simulators.
"It is the most impressed I've ever been by a piece of technology and I grew up in a generation where I had to buy a floppy disk and take it to school," the teacher said.
School officials say the program was funded by the school district and community partners.
Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
