Flight Instructor Andy McKee and Ag/Vo-Tech teacher Toby Kuehn enjoy introducing the new aviation class from Joseph Charter School to flight in a small craft.

The sky’s the limit for students in Joseph Charter School’s first aviation class.

Ag/Vo-Tech teacher Toby Kuehn already has mapped out his curriculum – including actual flying last Wednesday — for what he says is the first high school aviation class west of the Mississippi.

Twelve of the students made the trip to Joseph Airport to go up in three planes with three qualified pilots and get a seat-of-the-pants notion of what it means to fly small craft. There are 13 students in the class. One was unable to attend Wednesday’s flights.

Whoever was lucky enough to call “shotgun” even got to take the controls for a bit of well-supervised trim and banking experiments.

Commercial pilot Tim Locke, flight instructor Andy McKee and private pilot and Maul airplane dealer Wup Winn took the kids up. The three planes were a Cessna 172, a Cessna 182, and Wup Winn’s own Maul MX7 with outback tires.

Kuehn, who still has his pilot’s license and only needs to update before he can fly again, and Joseph School District Superintendent Lance Homan also went up.

Homan approved the class plan when Kuehn presented it. He remains enthusiastic about the future of the program.

“Just having willing people like these pilots to help out and give it their time helps,” Homan said.

It’s a mutual feeling from the pilots’ point of view.

“I think I speak for Andy and Wup when I say we are inspired,” Locke said. “Pilots are engaged in such a unique activity that most folks don’t get to participate or understand what we do. Consequently, young people often don’t get introduced to the sometimes mysterious world of aeronautics and aviation. I am especially grateful to have grown up in Wallowa County, gone off and made a career out of my passion and then come back and be able to share it with a bunch of enthusiastic, opened minded Wallowa County high school kids.”

The first quarter of the year-long aviation class will be an opportunity to continue to hear from speakers representing various aspects of aviation.

“We’re starting with research on careers in aviation,” Kahn said, “So we’ve heard from Andy McKee and Tim Locke and will soon hear from Sarah Lucas, a commercial rating and designs expert who will talk about how airspace is regulated and airports are designed — and Wup Winn.”

The next component of the class will include a study of control surfaces and flight using radio control models and a flight simulator that has been offered for free by retired U.S. Air Force Flight Engineer Brett Hays of Enterprise.

“Brett built this himself, and it’s a fully functional flight simulator,” Kuehn said. “It’s some pretty cool technology and a huge donation.

“These kids are in this class because they want to be,” Kuehn said. “(For a teacher) that’s easy — you can set your expectations pretty high.”

Some students have set their own expectations pretty high as well, with several confessing to have their sights set on military occupations where their skills would be used.

“This class seems pretty awesome,” Aaron Borgerding said. “I want to be a pilot for the Navy when I’m older.”

Ben Lopez also has military aspirations.

“I want to join the Air Force after high school,” Lopez said.

Other students simply hope to broaden their experience and possibly their horizons.

“I’ll get to fly and maybe go somewhere with it,” Gavin Baldwin said. “Maybe I’ll get my pilot’s license.”

Exchange student Anna Ytander found it exciting to learn about.

“We don’t have (so much) opportunity (to learn to fly) in Sweden,” she said. “I’m really nervous, but I think it would be very fun.”

The program has the support of Treasure Valley Community College, which has an aviation program.