LAX Flight Path Museum Offers Unique “Flying” Opportunity

The current professional pilot shortage has been in the news for some time now, and more pilots are reaching the age of mandatory retirement. This means that airlines are desperate to find and recruit greater numbers of competent pilots to replace those who are leaving than they have in years past. This then entails the need for higher quantities of people to gain the training needed to fill these positions, which means we need to get individuals interested in aviation as a career, not just as pilots, but in all aspects of the aviation world. How do we do this?

There are a number of aviation related agencies which have day events to encourage young people to consider aviation as a career, including the Experimental Aircraft Association, Women in Aviation, and the Ninety-Nines, just to name a few, but are these day events enough to really engage the flying spark or do the future flyers need something a bit more immersive? There is one organization whose mission is to educate people of all ages in the history of aviation at Los Angeles World Airport (LAX), but they have an in-house program that goes one step further.

The Flight Path and Learning Center of LAX (www.flightpathlax.com) had a program which gave young flyers some basic education in aviation, along with being able to fly Microsoft Flight Simulator X, led by a former Flying Tigers Captain Douglas Happ. But then the pandemic hit and all programs were shut down right before another class was to begin.

After the museum’s reopening in 2022, current Flight Path President Jean-Christophe (JC) Dick and the Flight Path Board desired to get the program off the ground again. A new Level 1 course was created by Atlas Air 747 First Officer Karen Goodman, who is also the instructor. The new curriculum expanded upon the previous program by increasing the training from five classes to nine classes, with each session offering the students a fundamental version of ground school, followed by practical experience of flight planning and then flying what they had just planned.

The program takes the students from little or no aviation knowledge through training on such items as foundations of flight, aviation weather, airport markings, basic instruments, and communications to the capstone event where the students plan a basic flight to a destination, and then compete to see who will arrive first at the destination.

Karen stated that she sees an incredible increase in the student’s skills, from how they handle the aircraft on the first class to how they can plan and fly on the last day. The students practice their lessons on computers running Microsoft Flight Sim 2020, and the addition of flight simulator equipment from a generous donation by Honeycomb Aeronautical (flyhoneycomb.com) have helped make this class very close to what the students may encounter when they take to the real skies.

Karen stated that two classes have been completed, and already two of the graduates are pursuing flight training. Additionally, Karen is preparing two higher levels of classes which will give some simulated experience in flying complex planes and multiengine light twins (Level 2), as well as time learning the CRJ-900 and the Boeing 747 (Level 3). In order to be a part of these classes, one must have completed the previous classes.

The Flight Path Museum is gearing up for a new semester and a new Level 1 class. Classes are limited to ten students. Applications are accepted on the Flight Path website (flightpathlax.com/training) and open to those ages 13-20. A 500-word essay is required with the application and the students have to commit to attending all nine sessions.

Karen Goodman is a Life Member of ISA+21 (International Society of Women Airline Pilots), a Life Member of the Ninety-Nines, and a member of Women in Aviation. She currently flies the 747-400, 747-8, and the 747-400 Dream Lifter and is also typerated in the CL-65 (CRJ-900, 700, 200).

(Publishers - For more information on the article, please contact Karen Goodman at karen.goodman@flightpathlax.com)