FREDERICK, MD – The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) hosted its second annual High School Aviation STEM Symposium at Seattle’s Museum of Flight Nov. 6 and 7. The event was attended by almost 200 education and aviation industry representatives from 33 states and Canada. Last year’s symposium, the first of its kind, was held at the Aerospace Center for Excellence in Lakeland, Fla and covered by U.S. News & World Report.
AOPA has identified a gap in aviation youth education that no other organization is filling. By working with schools directly, AOPA is helping to expose a diverse group of students to aviation that might otherwise never realize that a career as a pilot, aerospace engineer, or aircraft mechanic is within reach.
AOPA President Mark Baker said the future looked bright for students now in high school. “There are real careers and real opportunities for students,” Baker told the group, noting an expected shortage for pilots and mechanics worldwide expected to climb past 600,000 full-time positions in the next 20 years, according to a Boeing study.