Irving To Use Phenom 100 as Flying Classroom

Barrington Irving, founder of Experience Aviation, will use a donated Embraer Phenom 100 light jet as a flying classroom to encourage students to pursue education in science, technology, engineering and math (Stem). Entrepreneur and philanthropist Fabio Alexander is providing the jet, with “continuing support” covered by Embraer, for Experience Aviation’s “Journey for Knowledge” program. In addition to traditional Stem subjects, students will also learn about global history, geography, weather and culture as Irving flies around the world with the aircraft. Irving also focused on education during his around-the-world, three-month flight in a single-engine aircraft in 2007. (This record-setting flight made him the youngest person, at 23, and the first African American pilot to fly solo around the world.) Using the Phenom 100 as a flying classroom, Irving will communicate via live video feed with thousands of students during his flights leading up to and including another around-the-world trip planned for 2013. His goal is to bring a live 41,000-foot classroom to more than one million students throughout the world. “This is a great example of how business aircraft are used to advance our society and enhance quality of life around the world,” said Embraer Executive Jets president Ernest Edwards.