A Camp For Kids With Eyes On The Skies

By Elliott Francis

In Maryland, kids from around the Washington region are attending a unique summer camp. They won’t learn how to build a campfire, but they are learning to fly.

11-year old Adam Cass is about to fly a plane for the first time. There’ll be an instructor along to guide him, but Adam will take the controls and pilot this small 4-seater. He’s even planned the landing.

“Find 7-degrees, hit the slope until the back wheels touch, and hope it works,” Cass says.

Adam is one of 20 middle schoolers attending the "Sky’s the Limit" flying camp sponsored the Bullis School in Potomac. It’s week-long camp with a wide range of activities designed to introduce young folks to the joys of flight.

Today, campers start with a little ground school instruction, then it’s off to the flight line.

Betsy Samperry is camp director.

"Today they’ll be flying at the controls of a Cessna 172, they’ll land and switch places with the other person in the aircraft. It’s a busy day,” Samperry says.

And an exciting one for Adam as he prepares to take off.

“This is like the first time I’ve actually flown an airplane," he says.

The flight out of Montgomery Airpark takes about 20 minutes. After landing, Adam is still flying high.

“It was a good flight. We did some nice 360’s around Davis and it was fun. Awesome!" he says.

Camp ends tomorrow following a meet and greet with Navy jet pilot.