From unmanned aircraft to flying to maintenance, 30 high school students from across Tennessee experienced the various aspects of the profession during the MTSU aerospace Introduction to Aviation Camp June 1-5.

The camp was held both at the Jean A. Jack Flight Operations Center and other MTSU facilities at Murfreesboro Airport and in aerospace technology labs in the Business and Aerospace Building.

Coordinated by MTSU’s nationally respected Department of Aerospace, the activities included unmanned aircraft systems, pro pilot, flight simulators, maintenance management and the air traffic control and technology laboratories.

“We’ve been rotating them through the various stations, representing all of the operational aspects of aviation,” said professor Wendy Beckman, the director of the fifth-year camp.

Wearing earplugs and safety glasses, Introduction to Aviation camper Carson Rogers, left, of Murfreesboro listens June 3 as MTSU associate professor Joe Hawkins explains maintenance and working mechanisms for the loud engine. (MTSU photos by Randy Weiler)

“It has been a great experience,” said Tim Potter, 16, of Christiana, Tennessee, midway through the camp. “You get to fly and see how things run. You see the job opportunities, such as unmanned aircraft and the transporting of goods and freight.”

Potter, a rising Riverdale High School sophomore, has aviation in his genes. His father, Tim, flies for UPS.

Carson Rogers, 12, of Murfreesboro, a rising seventh-grader at Central Magnet School, said what he found interesting was “learning about how plane parts are made.”

Weather, which included fog and low clouds, delayed flights in the Introduction to Aviation Camp.

The Professional Pilot Advanced Camp, which is full, will be held June 15-17 in the MTSU facilities at the airport. This camp offers three days of flight-oriented instruction.

To learn more about the camps and about registering for either camp in 2016, visit www.mtsu.edu/aerospace.

For more information about the camps or the aerospace program, call the department at 615-898-2788 or email Mary Lou Cornett at Marylou.Cornett@mtsu.edu or Beckman at Wendy.Beckman@mtsu.edu.

— Randy Weiler (Randy.Weiler@mtsu.edu)

Alex Lomis, left, observes MTSU flight instructor Zach Hutcherson following cockpit and airplane safety precautions June 3 in the Introduction to Aviation Camp at Murfreeesboro Airport.