SFA students are first to fly new two-seater airplane in America

NACOGDOCHES, Texas ( KETK ) – Students in Stephen F. Austin State University’s flight program were first in the country to fly the brand new Tecnam P-Mentor trainer airplane.

“Tecnam has been flying the airframe around the world for a couple of years now, and I was able to fly one out of Brazil to test it,” said Jack Gainer, chief instructor pilot for SFA’s aviation sciences program. “The P-Mentors that we received are even more advanced than that aircraft, and we are the first ones in the nation to have them. Not only are we the first to fly them in the United States, but they arrived in our SFA purple colors.”

The Tecnam P-Mentor is a state-of-the-art Italian two-seater training airplane with the latest avionics and a fuel-efficient engine. According to a press release, SFA’s aviation science program and their training on the P-Mentor are offered in partnership with the HCH Aviation training school.

“The delivery of the P-Mentor caps off our conversion of our fleet to an all-inclusive Tecnam Flight Program,” said Kristen Conklin, HCH Aviation president and a 2009 SFA graduate. “The innovation, low operational cost and aerodynamics of this platform are perfect for our students and our operations. This combined with the reliability of Tecnam Aircraft’s products made it a very easy decision to choose the P-Mentor.”

Josi Oujesky, a aviation sciences major at SFA, was their first student to pilot the P-Mentor, making her the first student in the country to fly the new model of plane.

“She said the P-Mentor felt very different and that the plane is more stable,” Gainer said. “It’s designed that way, with much more control and incredible aerodynamic technicalities. It’s just a really enjoyable airplane for students.”

According to a press release, they got their first four P-Mentors back in June, they’ll get three more before the fall semester starts and then they’ll get two more in the Spring.

“One of the things that we’re really interested in, both SFA and HCH Aviation, is to keep a modern fleet,” Gainer said. “We want a new, clean fleet that is well maintained. In comparison to some of the other flight training universities that are still flying 1960s, ’70s or ’80s aircrafts, we will have quite a fleet.”

Incoming ‘Flying Jacks’ could have the chance to fly one of the new planes within their first week in the program. To learn more, visit SFA online .

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