SLO

A mentorship provided to an individual in order for them to gain insight into the interest of their own. I have done that throughout the school year with my mentorship. I could not have asked for a better place or better people to mentor with at Lanier Flight Center. They are open to conversation about more than aircraft we are working on, and they truly care about what happens to be going on with my academics and sports. Through the year I have not only gained the experience of working on the aircraft, but I have also gained friends that I can rely on to go back to if I need any guidance in the aviation field. This mentorship went beyond my expectations of what I would accomplish while on the job.
I ultimately believe I got the most out of my experience throughout the year. In order for me to meet this goal I had to have my ears open at all times. A key characteristic for someone to have going into a mentorship is to be able to be teachable. If you are not teachable then how are you going to learn from your mentors? Listening to your mentors is how you become knowledgeable in the field that interest you. Also, I ask a lot of questions because they often put me on tasks that require me to ask questions. They want me to ask questions because if you mess up on the smallest thing it can affect the plane in a major way.
This year long mentorship has provided me with more insight into the career field of my mentorship than I ever dreamed of. I worked more than I thought I would work, learned more information than thought I would learn and gained relationships from my mentors that will last. This mentorship has affected me in only one way, positively! I have not changed my interest in this career field one bit.
My advice to students who want to join or are already accepted into the Honors Mentorship program is to ask as many questions as possible. Asking questions allows you to learn information from your mentor that you don't know prior to your mentorship.

1/12 Interview

Question 1: Wes have you ever worked on Jets?
Answer: Yes I worked for Delta for three years. I worked the night shift at the Atlanta airport for Delta, and there was always planes coming and going into the maintenance.
Question 2: Did you like your job at Delta?
Answer: I loved working for Delta and I the people I worked with at Delta, but the night shift didn't work for me. I was working twelve hour shifts through the night, and would come home while my wife is leaving. Then I would be leaving when my wife was getting home from her work. I couldn't do that with my wife.
Question 3: Working on both Jets and Props, which one is easier to work on?
Answer: Jets!!
Question 4: Why are Jets easier to work on?
Answer: Most people think that Jets are more complex, but in reality prop planes are more complex than Jets. Jets are also more spread out, and not compressed into a singular round cylinder.
Question 5: Why are props harder to work on?
Answer: Props look much easier to work on, but everything is crammed into the smallest space in order for it to all fit. Also, there are more components to a prop engine.
Question 6: Which plane is more fun to fly?
Answer: Prop planes are definitely more fun to fly, but thats my opinion. I like how quickly you are able to move the planes direction.
Question 7: Why are Jets less fun to fly?
Answer: Jets fly so quickly and some are so heavy that they can't change their directions quickly at all. Some jets are like flying tanks in the air. Prop planes are overall much more fun to fly and maneuver with.
Question 8: Is there any advantage for one over the other?
Answer: Prop planes burn less fuel through the time they fly mainly because through the time they fly they go slower than any Jet plane out there.
Question 9: John have you ever worked on any type of Jet?
Answer: Yes I was a mechanic in the Marines on the F-18 Hornet.
Question 10: Did you like working on those aircraft more than the ones here?
Answer: I loved working on those aircraft of course because they were beasts, but I love working on these prop planes because I get to fly them as well.

3/16

There are key ways to overcome public speaking phobia. Prepare, posture and physicality and pander to your audience is the triple P method that everyone should take when speaking in front of the public. Preparation is the key one to me if you ask me. If you are prepared and know exactly what you are speaking about, you should not have a problem reporting your information to the crowd. The other two keys are to keep you audience intrigued with the topic you are reporting. If you are up there just reading off the cards, the audience will be bored out of their minds, but if you are walking around spitting interesting facts and cracking jokes the audience will listen. The triple P method will work when presenting to an audience.

3/2

Paul, my mentor, is an alumni of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He flies for American Airlines to China roughly once a month, and he also works at Lanier Flight Center as the head mechanic and a flight instructor. Paul had to work his way up in American Airlines, and become a certified mechanic in order to work maintenance on aircraft. The pathway he took I would love to do once I have retired from the Air Force. I love doing maintenance on the aircraft in the hangar, and there are not really any bad projects that you have to perform.

02/02

This week of February 2nd I am composing more research for my final project. I am looking through Galileo for more articles on the web comparing the differences between prop engines and jet engines. I am also reading a book I received from my brother for christmas regarding all military aircraft in the last century. This book provides you with the layout and facts about the aircraft in combat, so you will know the capabilities of the planes through this book. This book provides you with more than 500 detailed descriptions I can use in my research.

01/05 Post

My research in the aviation field is driven through my passion to have a career in aviation. I love planes and I want t fly them for the rest of my life. There is only one thing I view as more interesting in our world and that is the game of baseball. For planes to be at the top of the list with baseball this means I have a very strong desire to achieve my goals and fly in the United States Air Force. My essential question has not changed. My essential question was, how would I construct a jet? I will I use the website required but I will make a model of a jet to represent what I will be speaking about. I had many questions about aircraft when I first came to Lanier Flight Center as an intern, but I have been provided with an overwhelming amount of answers regarding the questions I had prior to my internship. When you have questions about the work you or someone else is doing, it allows you to learn hands-on the facts and engineering behind aviation through the curiosity of your mind.

Essential Question:

How would I construct a Jet?

I selected this question because honestly I have no knowledge behind how to construct a Jet. This research would allow me to learn new facts about this area I previously did not know. This question ultimately excites me because I want to fly Jets one day, and maybe even work on Jets one day. The answer would intrigue me as to all the steps it takes to build such a complex machine, and how the steps progress to make the complete aircraft. This question definitely fits me because I love air planes, and want to glean as much information as possible. I also believe this question is right for me because this project will be fun rather than just another school project we get for a grade, but we all get to look in depth to the career interest we all desire!