Helicopter Foundation International (HFI) is awarding $70,000 in scholarships to 20 recipients this year. “The cost of education in aviation is high, both for pilots and maintenance personnel,” said Allison McKay, v-p of HFI, the charitable arm of HAI. “Through the scholarship program, we help to offset this burden and allow the students to focus on continuing their education. We offer our congratulations to this year’s recipients and encourage students around the world to apply for 2020 scholarships.”
Recipients of $5,000 scholarships to pilots working toward their commercial rating are: Sakaya Arai of Beverly Hills, California; Charles Beesley of Cole Camp, Missouri; Melissa Cooper of Kona, Hawaii; and Joyce Yu of Portland, Oregon.
New flight training scholarships at Southern Utah University, worth up to $20,000 were awarded to Brendon Peterson of Ionia, Michigan; and Kaylee Elliot of Cedar City, Utah.
Recipients of $2,500 scholarships for students in maintenance technician programs are: Evan Falk of Holt, Michigan; Tracy Geest of Tremonton, Utah; Hamin Kirn of Williamsport, Pennsylvania; Michael Ranker of Laurel, Maryland; Noah White of Cornerbrook, Newfoundland-Labrador, Canada; and Carlos Ybarra of Waco, Texas.
And the recipient of the Michelle North Scholarship for Safety, which provides full tuition to the HFI Safety Management program at Heli-Expo, is Joshua Chason of Braselton, Virginia.
HFI also oversees the Bill Sanderson Aviation Maintenance Scholarships, administering the program on behalf of the HAI Technical Committee. Recipients (and sponsors) of scholarships and stipends (up to $1,600) are Paul Pelletier of Columbia, Connecticut (Airbus); Cody Bentzel of Williamsport, Pennsylvania (Leonardo); Ethan Mutschler of Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania (Pratt & Whitney); Klade Kerr of Timmons, Ontario (MD Helicopters); Daniel Galica of Tinley Park, Illinois (Honeywell); Evan Falk of Holt, Michigan (Rolls-Royce); and Cullen Thompson of Mountain, Ontario, Canada (Safran Turbomeca).
The application process for HFI's 2020 scholarships begins in August.