IV Elementary Students Win Santa Barbara Airport’s Wings of Triumph Trophy
The contest was open to sixth graders from the Santa Barbara and Goleta School Districts who had participated in the Future Flyers Education Program for GATE students at the Airport. This year’s winners of the coveted Wings of Triumph trophy were Jasmine Papias, Anjali Thakrar and Amanda Jo Soderman from Isla Vista Elementary School in Goleta, California. The young girls designed and successfully flew an aircraft they called “Dauntless,” at an altitude of 20 feet and for a distance of 77 feet. The GATE teacher who headed up this award-winning project was Krista Lucchi. The competition pitted teams of areas students against each other in a challenge to see who could design, build and competitively fly the best balsa wood homemade airplane.
All Competition Aircraft needed to:
o Be made of balsa wood
o Be powered by a rubber band
o Be multi engine (having more than one propeller)
All aircraft were allowed to take two flights each and were judged on each of the following:
o Longest flight
o Highest flight
o Most creative design
o Best of Show, overall
Judges for this event were members of the Santa Barbara Radio Control Modelers Club.
Future Flyers is an Aviation Education Outreach Program available to all local sixth grade GATE students and is taught by Tim Lawton, Education Liaison for the Santa Barbara Airport.
For more information or questions about the next Future Flyers program call Tim Lawton at 805 964-7622 or go to Flysba.com.
Contact: Karen Ramsdell, Airport Director
Phone: 805.967.7111
Email: KRamsdell@SantaBarbaraCA.gov