VIDEO | Students learning STEM skills while building airplane in West Bend and Hartford, WI

West Bend/ Hartford, WI – More than a dozen students from the West Bend area are building an RV-12is airplane from a kit with the help of mentors at Kettle Moraine Youth Aviation (KMYA) which is part of EAA West Bend, Wi. The overarching theme of the course is building airplanes | building leaders.

Howard Kaney is the vice president of KMYA and one of the mentors overseeing the project.

The work atmosphere is comfortable. Hoodies, t-shirts and blue jeans are the norm.

Alex Janasiak, 13, is an 8th grader at Badger Middle School. “This is a way for me to learn teamwork and leadership,” he said.

Students who participate in the KMYA project need to fill out an application. There is a $100 fee to take part. Click HERE for an application.

Eliza Anderson, 16, attends Living Word Lutheran High School in Jackson. “I didn’t know anything when I started, and I learned all the tools and how to prep the parts and put everything together,” she said.

Anderson, who wants to be an airline pilot, is a member of Honors Academy at school. She was interested in engineering and her dad met someone who told them about the group of students building an RV-12is plane.

“I learned about reading blueprints, plans, and part numbers. It was hard to learn how to read everything but now it’s easier. To be a pilot you need to know the ins and outs of a plane and by being a part of this I’m learning. I’m excited to get more girls into it as well.”

As part of the plane-building course, students keep a builder’s log and document their progress in meticulous detail. As of Monday, January 8 the team had logged 19.7 hours and were focusing on completing the frontal systems and fuel tank. Click HERE to read the diary of the RV-12is.

Nicholas Belongia, 18, attends Ozaukee High School and has his sights set on becoming a pilot. “Just learning how to build a plane, use the tools, getting flight experience that can help me get somewhere in life,” he said.

Kaney said the plan is to assemble an aircraft, test fly it and then may be sell the aircraft and reinvest the proceeds back into the program.

“Part of what we do here is just expose the students to opportunities that they wouldn’t learn about in any other way,” said Kaney. “What we’re really doing is building students that build airplanes.”

Click HERE to learn more about Kettle Moraine Youth Aviation.

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