Taking Flight with MCCC Student Athlete Aviation Majors

12/19/23

 

 

The Wright Brothers made their first flight 120 years on December 17th.  In honor of anniversary, we are going to look at one of the unique majors that MCCC has to offer, Aviation and highlight student athletes in this program.

 

MCCC students can earn an AAS in Aviation Flight Technology.  This degree program is accredited by the Aviation Accreditation Board and provides flight instruction for private and commercial certifications and instrument rating.  In order to complete this degree program, every student must successfully pass the FAA Private, Commercial, and Instrument computer examinations and be certified as a commercial pilot with instrument rating.  97% of MCCC students pass their commercial pilot exam on their first attempt.  

 

Flight training is done at the Trenton-Mercer County Regional Airport, where the college has access to a fleet of aircraft and supervises the flight instructors.  The program involves both classroom and lab hours.

 

MCCC has approved examining authority for FAA computer tests and the ability to conduct flight tests for the issuance of private and commercial pilots’ licenses as well as the instrument and multiengine ratings.

 

Students in the Aviation Flight Technology program can obtain the appropriate ground and flight certificates and enter aviation positions requiring specific aviation knowledge with airport service operators located at airports in the United States.

 

Freshman men’s soccer player Bastian Strunk (Weingarten, Germany/Albert Einstein G. Ravensburg) is in the Aviation Flight Technology program.  The forward started six games for the Vikings and played in nine overall.  Strunk will look to help the Vikings repeat as Region 19 Champions next fall.

 

Sophomore baseball player Tyler Gonzalez (Glastonbury, CT/Cheshire Academy) completed the initial pilot portion of the Aviation Flight Technology major.  Gonzalez hit .225 for the Vikings last spring and had 17 RBIs on the season while starting in right field.

 

These student athletes are having success in the skies and on the field.  Good luck to our Aviation majors as they continue to take flight!

 

To read more about the Aviation program at MCCC, visit: https://www.mccc.edu/catalog/avi_flt_aas.shtml