Mechanics Attend Training Seminar at Aviation Center

Oct. 24, 2011 - 6:25 p.m.

More than 80 Airframe and Powerplant mechanics holding inspection authorization attended a training seminar Saturday coordinated by Penn College and the Federal Aviation Administration Flight Standards District Office in Harrisburg. In addition to the FAA representatives at the Lumley Aviation Center in Montoursville, presenters included Randy Jenson, of Lycoming Engines; Chad R. Wilcox, from the Eagles Mere Air Museum (a former aviation maintenance technology student now enrolled in welding technology); and Thomas D. Inman, associate professor of aviation, who also provided the photos at left.

Aviation Students, Faculty Member Provide Ground Support for Rotary Air Show

Sept. 20, 2011 - 12:46 p.m.

Penn College aviation students Alper B. Tan, Marc T. Kaylor, Jacob R. Tuck, Richard M. "Matt" Hause and Daniel A. Starr – along with co-department head Thomas D. Inman – provided ground support for air-show aircraft at last weekend's Lycoming County Rotary Clubs Festival 2011. The college was a "co-pilot sponsor" for the event, held at the Lycoming County Fairgrounds in Hughesville. Aircraft included Team RV, the world’s largest formation aerobatic team; Misty Blues, an all-female skydiving team; and Jeff Maurer, a Pennsylvania-based aerobatic act. The students and Inman pumped more than 200 gallons of smoke oil during the event. Team RV and Maurer make smoke trails by pumping special oil into the exhaust. Each airplane has a smoke-oil tank that must be refilled between performances. Altogether, the aerobatic aircraft used more than 50 gallons of oil per performance. Tuck saved the day after the oil pump came apart Saturday, leaving half inside the 55-gallon drum. The freshman used his aviation toolbox (and considerable skill) to extract the components stuck inside the barrel and reassemble the pump. Inman and Team RV members worked the phones and arranged for the Lycoming Engine Co. to loan the students a pump that was used as a backup. Inman, Tan, Kaylor and Tuck were offered a seat to ride along with the pilots. Inman rode Friday night, during a media/sponsor flight; the students rode Sunday during a practice session. “Pulling three G’s makes you feel your age,” said Inman, who added that students were much less affected. The pilots performed a variety of tight-formation maneuvers, as well as a follow-the-leader exercise in which each airplane had to follow the exact path of the preceding aircraft – an exercise characterized by Inman as "much like riding a 3,000-foot-high rollercoaster."
Photos provided by Thomas D. Inman, associate professor of aviation

Three Helicopters Delivered for Long-Term Instructional Benefit

Sept. 1, 2011 - 11:38 a.m.

Three Sikorsky helicopters have arrived at Penn College's Lumley Aviation Center, where the aircraft will provide students with years of hands-on training opportunities. The aircraft will be used in the aviation maintenance technology bachelor-degree major and in the associate-degree aviation technology major; students in both take a Rotary Wing Systems and Maintenance course. There will be applications in many other classes – dealing with aircraft structures, airframe electrical systems, reciprocating engines, for instance – and all aviation students will work on the helicopters at some point while enrolled at Penn College. Seniors in the bachelor-degree major also may select specific repairs as part of their capstone projects, said Colin W. Williamson, dean of transportation technology.

Student Awarded $2,000 Scholarship From Aviation Trade Group

March 24, 2011 - 11:02 a.m.

A junior in Penn College’s four-year aviation maintenance technology major has been awarded a $2,000 scholarship from the Aircraft Electronics Association. Terrence A. Heim, of Malvern, on track to graduate in May 2012 from the college’s School of Transportation Technology, will receive the Garmin Scholarship during the 2011-12 academic year. In order to qualify for the award, part of more than $100,000 in scholarships announced by the AEA Educational Foundation, he had to complete a brief essay in competition with candidates from around the world.

FAA Seminar Held Saturday at College's Aviation Center

Oct. 25, 2010 - 11:30 a.m.

More than 80 Airframe and Powerplant mechanics attended a nine-hour Inspection Authorization Renewal seminar held Saturday at Penn College's Lumley Aviation Center in Montoursville. The Federal Aviation Administration requires aircraft mechanics holding inspection authorization credentials to receive several hours of training each year. Presenters included Scott Starick, of Aero Mech inc., who discussed Reduced Vertical Separation Minimums certification and maintenance; Thomas D. Inman, associate professor of aviation at Penn College, human-error reduction by development of a "safety net" based on personality type; Mike Caldera, of Lycoming Engines, Lycoming engine maintenance; and Penn College aviation instructor William P. "Scott" Welch and various FAA representatives, who addressed aviation law. Some of the participants traveled to and from the event in their own aircraft.

College’s SkillsUSA Competitors Bring Home Silver, Bronze Medals

July 2, 2010 - 9:28 a.m.

Two Penn College representatives were among medalists at SkillsUSA’s 46th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference held June 21-25 in Kansas City, Mo. Robert W. Brobst, of Salisbury, Md., placed second in the Precision Machining Technology category, and Christopher M. Gayman, of Columbia, brought home a third-place medal in Aviation Maintenance Technology. Brobst is enrolled in the manufacturing engineering technology major, and Gayman graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in aviation maintenance technology.

Helicopter Association Rewards Penn College Aviation Students

March 2, 2010 - 12:27 a.m.

Two Penn College seniors were among only eight students worldwide recently awarded scholarships from Helicopter Association International’s Technical Committee. Justin A. Eshleman, of Pequea, and Christopher M. Gayman, of Columbia, enrolled in the aviation maintenance technology bachelor-degree major, received Bill Sanderson Aviation Maintenance Technician Scholarships that provide a tuition waiver for manufacturer training schools. Accompanied by William F. Stepp III, associate professor of aviation, the students also attended the Heli-Expo – the world’s largest trade show dedicated to the helicopter industry – and participated in the Technical Committee meeting, manufacturer technical briefings and a job fair.

Aviation Program Spotlighted in National Magazine

Feb. 17, 2010 - 1:46 p.m.

Thanks to the journalistic contributions of a faculty member, the February issue of Avionics News spotlights current students and an alumna of Penn College's aviation program. Thomas D. Inman, an associate professor at the Lumley Aviation Center in Montoursville, conducted an interview with 2006 aviation maintenance technology graduate Gail A. (Krifka) Fike, a maintenance technician at EraMED's Geisinger Medical Center base. In his regular Theory & Practice column in the premier trade magazine for the general aviation avionics/electronics industry, Inman also wrote about how schools can team up on mutually beneficial projects with museums and other institutions. (An accompanying photo shows aviation technology majors Zachary J. Robinson, of Monroeton, left, and Paul M. Thomas, of East Petersburg.) Both articles, made available here with the publication's permission, follow:

[View PDF file]

Museum Donates Helicopter to Lumley Aviation Center

Dec. 16, 2009 - 8:26 a.m.

A Boeing-Bölkow BO-105C twin-engine helicopter, donated by the American Helicopter Museum and Education Center in Chester, arrived at Penn College’s Lumley Aviation Center on Tuesday. William F. Stepp III, the associate professor of aviation who worked with museum officials to secure the donation, is looking forward to using the aircraft in the Rotary Wing Systems & Maintenance course because the Boeing is equipped with a state-of-the-art rotor-head assembly. The BO-105C is powered by two Allison 400-horsepower jet engines, and can carry more than a ton at speeds up to 144 miles per hour. The aircraft type is all-weather capable, and has been used as executive transports and as air ambulances. Although the helicopter will compliment the Rotary Wing class, the aircraft can be used in other classes such as Sheet Metal Aircraft Structures, Airframe Electronic and Instrument Systems, and Avionics Maintenance Applications. 
Photo by Thomas D. Inman, associate professor of avionics

Long-Term Aircraft-Restoration Project Delivered to Lumley Aviation Center

Dec. 8, 2009 - 3:10 p.m.

A Bell UH-1H helicopter, owned by the American Helicopter Museum and Education Center in Chester, arrived at Penn College's Lumley Aviation Center by truck Tuesday for the start of a long-term restoration project. The museum asked the Aviation Center to restore the aircraft to display status, which William F. Stepp III, associate professor of aviation – who arranged the project – said will take approximately five years to complete. The helicopter can be used in several aviation courses, in particular, the Bachelor of Aviation Maintenance capstone. Founded in 1996, the museum is dedicated exclusively to rotorcraft. It boasts a display of more than 35 military and civilian helicopters, autogyros and convertaplanes, including the V-22 Osprey.
Photos by Carl J. Burns, a second-year aviation maintenance technology student from Sweet Valley