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News & Media Membership: Scholarships available

Membership: Scholarships available

Applications accepted starting in January

January 1, 2020 By Julie Summers Walker
Thanks to the generosity of the James C. Ray Foundation and generous donations to the AOPA Foundation, exceptional high school students, ages 15 to 18; high school teachers; and AOPA members who are primary flight training students are eligible for scholarships in 2020.
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Does a cross-country have to be 50 nautical miles?

Q: I’m a CFI and I just sent a student on a cross-country (50 nautical miles). The student asked if he could land at another airport en route to the one that is 50 nm out. I said no, as that is not a cross-country. But, after looking at the regs and trying to find an answer, I’m wondering why he couldn’t. In fact, I’m trying to find where it says a solo cross-country, to be logged as such, has to be 50 nm. Could you please enlighten me?

A: Let’s start with FAR 61.1 and the basic definition of a cross-country: time acquired during flight, conducted by a person who holds a pilot certificate, while in an aircraft, that includes a landing at a point other than the point of departure; and that involves the use of dead reckoning, pilotage, electronic navigation aids, radio aids, or other navigation systems to navigate to the landing point. No specific distance requirement. So, if you fly VFR from ABC airport to XYZ airport, 3 miles away, and eyeballed it by pilotage, that is a cross-country and can be logged as such.

It should also be noted that FAA uses the term point and not airport. If you fly from an airport to an alfalfa field, also 3 miles away, that is a cross-country. This covers the bases for helicopter pilots, primarily, but it is not limited to rotary-wing flying.

Now, on to pilots training for a certificate or rating. The same regulation adds that any cross-country time a pilot must accumulate toward a certificate or rating must include a landing at a point more than 25 nm from the departure point for rotorcraft, and more than 50 nm for airplanes. Flights with multiple landings are fine, and the entire flight time can be used, provided at least one landing meets the distance requirement.

For more information, contact AOPA’s Pilot Information Center at 800-872-2672, or email [email protected]

Craig Brown is a senior aviation technical specialist in the AOPA Pilot Information Center.

These scholarship programs are part of the AOPA You Can Fly program, a collection of initiatives working toward building a larger, more vibrant pilot community. They are also a major benefit of AOPA membership, helping members reach their goals and advance into the aviation and aerospace careers they have always dreamed about.

High school scholarship recipients can use the $10,000 individual scholarship money for direct flight training expenses to pursue a primary pilot certificate. They must also complete a flight training milestone, achieving either solo or earning a primary pilot certificate, within one year of receiving a scholarship.

Teachers will be awarded scholarships of $10,000 each to pursue a private, sport, or recreational pilot certificate. To be eligible, a teacher must be an AOPA member—and a full-time employee of a school or school system—who is preparing students for a future in aviation.

AOPA Primary Flight Training scholarship awards range from $2,500 to $7,500. Current AOPA members who are at least 16 years of age by the application deadline are eligible to apply. The scholarship award can be applied to training for a private pilot, sport pilot, or recreational pilot certificate.

Applications open January 3, 2020, and close at 11:59 p.m. EDT on March 15, with a priority application date of March 1, 2020.

aopa.org/scholarships

There's more

To support outstanding pilots with career aspirations, the AOPA Foundation awards various scholarships, ranging from $3,000 to $10,000, to AOPA members seeking one of the following ratings or certificates:

  • Instrument.
  • Commercial.
  • Certificated flight instructor.
  • Certificated flight instructor—instrument.
  • Multiengine instructor.

In addition, there are many industry-funded scholarship opportunities outside of AOPA to help you fund your aviation aspirations. aopa.org/aviationscholarships

Julie Walker

Julie Summers Walker

AOPA Senior Features Editor
AOPA Senior Features Editor Julie Summers Walker joined AOPA in 1998. She is a student pilot still working toward her solo.
Go to Julie Summers Walker's Profile

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