Delta Connection Academy

Securing the Flight Line

SANFORD, Fla. August 26, 2008 - - There is always one thing you can count on; Mother Nature is rarely predictable. As Tropical Storm Fay made her curve towards Florida, more than 350 miles inland Delta Connection Academy was preparing personnel and aircraft to weather whatever Fay had to offer.

Initially forecasted to come ashore around Tampa Bay, Fay decided to make an abrupt turn to the east coming in just south of Naples and making a direct beeline straight for central Florida.

"In the case of Fay, the decision was made quickly not to evacuate and focus on protecting the fleet" said John O'Brien, Chief Operating Officer for Delta Connection Academy. "In my nine years with the Academy, we have gone through this about eight times, evacuated three times, and never had an injury. Our emergency plan works well."

The Academy relocated approximately 60 aircraft inside four hangers, two of which were volunteered by the Orlando/Sanford International Airport. More than 250 students and CFI's were sent home and did not fly for five days as Fay stalled off the coast of Titusville, roughly 30 miles east of Sanford.

"Our first priority is safety of our students" said O'Brien. "With such an unpredictable storm we did not want to take any chances. As the famous saying goes- I would rather be on the ground wishing I was in the air rather than in the air wishing I was on the ground."

Hurricane season runs through November 1 and forecasters once again predict an active season.

Delta Connection Academy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, operates a fleet of more than 96 aircraft, including the latest in technically

advanced aircraft with its fleet of 34 new Cirrus SR-20 G2 aircraft and its Level 3 Advanced Aircraft Training Devices and Level 6 Flight Training Devices. The Academy has trained students from 90 different countries and has placed pilots with more than 30 airlines including, but not limited to, all Delta Connection carriers, American Eagle Airlines, ExpressJet Airlines and Cape Air/Nantucket Airlines. In addition to its main campus at the Orlando/Sanford International Airport, the Academy is the flight-training partner for three colleges and universities across the United States and has a total enrollment of more than 750 flight students. For more information about Delta Connection Academy, call 1.800.U.CAN.FLY or visit www.DeltaConnectionAcademy.com.

Brazil Roadshow

We will be holding two information sessions in Brazil during the month of October.  Please join us to learn more about the Academy and hear from one of our Brazilian graduate students
 

Locations:

 
RSVP to: Rachel.Gaffney@DCA.EDU or call 001-407-330-7020

ACE Camp Jacksonville

SANFORD, Fla. July 20, 2008 - - Learning to fly this summer was not one of the things ACE Camp student Hakan Ozdemir had on his to-do list but a partnership between Delta Connection Academy and the Organization of Black Airline Pilots (OBAP) summer ACE Camp program landed him in the left seat on a flight of his lifetime.

Ozdemir joined eleven other ACE Camp students in Jacksonville, Florida for a week long introduction to the theory of aviation. Based off 24 existing ACE Camp summer programs nationwide, Jacksonville is only the second city in Florida to host the camp and the first to partner with Delta Connection Academy (DCA) to provide students the opportunity to actually fly.

DCA Certified Flight Instructors Miki Prince, James Dugger, and James Johnson took each student on a one-hour discovery flight 3,000 feet above the city. For 11 of the students, this was their first time flying in a small airplane.

"It was great" said Ozdemir. "I look forward to coming back next year."

The Organization of Black Airline Pilots Summer ACE Camp is a nationally recognized program co-sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Black Coalition of Federal Aviation Employees (NBCFAE).

The purpose of Aviation Career Education (ACE) is to offer first level exposure to the aviation industry by providing aviation career exploration for middle and high school students.

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Delta Connection Academy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, operates a fleet of more than 96 aircraft, including the latest in technically

advanced aircraft with its fleet of 34 new Cirrus SR-20 G2 aircraft and its Level 3 Advanced Aircraft Training Devices and Level 6 Flight Training Devices.

The Academy has trained students from 90 different countries and has placed pilots with more than 30 airlines including, but not limited to, all Delta Connection carriers, American Eagle Airlines, ExpressJet Airlines and Cape Air/Nantucket Airlines. With headquarters at the Orlando/Sanford International Airport and an expanding flight training facility in Houston, Texas, the Academy is the flight-training partner for three colleges and universities across the United States and has a total enrollment of more than 750 flight students. For more information about Delta Connection Academy, call 1.800.U.CAN.FLY or visit www.DeltaConnectionAcademy.com.