Augusta native, Jamail Larkins, was just 14 years old when he made his record-breaking flight as the youngest pilot to solo flight a Cessna 172.
Now, he’s helping to host an event next weekend to give interested CSRA STEM students a chance to use scholarship money to carve out a career pathway.
This fast-growing job sector is also propelled by internship opportunities through a few local school systems.
He and another local flight expert will be teaching the future generation at Augusta Regional Airport (AGS) next Saturday.
His AviationStart company is partnering with the National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) to bring the DreamLaunch tour to Augusta. It pairs the NAHF’s K-12 STEM curriculum with AviationStart’s access to scholarship money and career pathways.
The event also serves adult professionals ready for a career change.
“We’re partnering with Mark Owens of Owens Aircraft Service, that’s hosting a young eagles flight rally at the Augusta Regional Airport,” he told ABD. “They’ll have the opportunity to talk, experience, and see some of the other career options that are available outside of the aviation industry, and then they will have the opportunity to learn about the resources that are available to get them going.”
Larkins said it would have made his journey from a flight simulator video game to the cockpit as a pilot easier and faster. He believes his struggle will resonate with people attending the event.
“For a lot of the people that show up at our events, they’re curious about aviation, but they don’t know how to go about it,” he explained. “Whether it’s AviationStart or DreamLaunch, we’re giving them the direction, we’re giving them the resources, and we’re connecting them with all of the different programs that were out there.”
Through his website, Larkins has a database listing available scholarships. One of the largest is with the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Southern California Wing Museum.”
“They have a youth program to get the next generation involved in aviation, and they give a $19,000 scholarship for anyone between the ages of 16 and 19,” he said. “If I would have been able to apply for one of those and win, it wouldn’t have been struggling trying to figure out how to get every single hour of flight training. I could have focused on studying and literally learning how to become the best pilot I could possibly be.”
The collaboration comes at a particularly advantageous time. The aviation industry is facing the most severe workforce shortage in its history, across all job categories.
“About 83% of all of the mechanics that work inside the aviation industry right now are scheduled to retire within nine years. If we don’t feel fulfilled with that pipeline, which currently we don’t have the pipeline filled, we’re going to have problems,” said Larkins, adding it will impact more than business and leisure travel.
“Even sending packages overnight, supply chain disruptions, all sorts of things will affect the entire US economy,” he warned. “We have to get more people, not just to become pilots, but mechanics and the entire aviation career ecosystem.”
Last month, AGS announced an internship with the Richmond and Burke County Boards of Education called AIR EDU. Students will rotate through all departments at the airport to learn what opportunities are available. Larkins said AviationStart and DreamLaunch can be the next piece of the puzzle.
“They can see the whole spectrum of what might fit great for them, and then what I see AviationStart doing is connecting them with the resources to be able to make that dream become a reality,” he said. “All of these programs provide the inspiration to be able to do that, but sometimes they don’t provide a clear pathway. Once you know what you want to do, how do you actually make that happen? We’re providing a full career resource.”
The event at AGS is Saturday, Feb. 28, from 8:00 a.m. – 2:45 p.m. It is open to the public and is free to attend. Larkins said the event is open to all ages, from students to adults considers a midlife career change.
More information is at https://www.aviationstart.org/home.
