PCToday Photo Gallery - Industry Partner Allows Student Access to Brand-New Corporate Jet

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Just 10 days after receiving the aircraft from the factory, a faithful supporter of Pennsylvania College of Technology's aviation program landed its Gulfstream G550 at the Lumley Aviation Center on Wednesday. "Their willingness to bring this state-of-the-art aircraft for our students to interact with shows their commitment to the Penn College aviation center," noted Brett A. Reasner, associate professor of aviation technology. "This flight was not only a training flight for the pilots, but for the flight attendants and maintenance technicians, as well." When fully loaded, the $47 million jet can weigh as much as 91,000 pounds, he explained, adding that the two Rolls Royce turbofan engines can fly the aircraft to a maximum altitude of 51,000 feet with a cruise speed of Mach 0.87. "The aircraft is quite large in relation to the ramp space here at the college," noted Thomas D. Inman, associate professor of avionics. "Watching the crew taxi in and turn around was quite impressive!" A Penn College ground-power unit supplied 3-phase 400 Hz power to the airplane during the presentations to students, Inman said. Senior technicians Jim Delamater and Mike DeCosta demonstrated the on-board diagnostic equipment, which includes a dedicated laptop for maintenance and a wireless LAN that can be used to print hard copies of the aircraft-maintenance manual. Altria historically supports the college in a number of ways, including representation on its advisory committee and through an annual $3,000 donation for aviation scholarships. It also operates a summer-internship program and will return in a few weeks to interview students for such opportunities. Interested students can contact Reasner for more information.

— Photos by Jennifer A. Cline, news bureau writer/editor
and Thomas D. Inman, associate professor of avionics
 

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