10 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA
Thursday, March 14, 2002
Pilot
(continued from page 1)
as any mother would be, I
knew I should let him pursue
something that he so obviously
wants to do.”
Peter Yurchision admitted that
he did not go to his mother to
ask first, though. He figured
Dad might be able to help him
break the ice with his mother,
and get her to understand his
interest in flying.
“When 1 first told (my mom),
she wasn’t thrilled,” Peter said.
“But she knew it was something
I wanted to do.”
Yurchision began taking flying
lessons at the Wilkes-Barre In-
ternational Airport, in a Piper
Cherokee Warrior, which is a
four-seat single engine plane,
and from there his love for flying
took off.
In order to obtain a private pi-
lot's license, Yurchision had to
fulfill several requirements:
1. Be at least 17 years of age.
2. Gain at least 40 hours of
practice time in the air.
3. Pass a knowledge test.
4. Take a practical test.
5. Have at least three hours of
night flying practice.
6. Complete 10 hours of solo
flight.
7. Spend five hours in a solo
cross country flight.
Yurchision said the time spent
working on the knowledge and
studying aspects of flying has
been worth it once he got into
the air and behind the controls
of the plane.
“It is very peaceful in the air,”
said Yurchision. “You can see
for miles, and it is just a breath-
taking experience.”
Maria Yurchision said she has
tried to support :- her son
throughout the entire experi-
ence, and said that she finally
realized just how much he want-
ed to be a pilot when she saw
him fly a plane for the first time
alone.
“I was very nervous when he
went up for the first time alone,”
said Maria Yurchision, who was
Peter Yurchision’s room is decorated with flying memoribilia, including a full-size photo of an instru-
ment panel and the t-shirt he wore on his solo flight.
“It is very peaceful in the air.
You can see for miles, and it is just a
breathtaking experience.” |
Peter Yurchision, 17
Student pilot
able to watch her son from the
flight tower. “But when he finally
went into the air, it was an inde-
scribable feeling to watch him.
Peter Yurchision has already
made flights to Binghamton and
Selinsgrove, and had to make a
continuous flight from Avoca to
Binghamton, to Selinsgrove and
back to Avoca for his cross
country flight.
“I have about 68 hours of
flight time,” Peter said. “Over the
summer | take lessons about
four times a week, and during
the school year, I go once on the
weekend and two or three times
a week after school.”
. That commitment of time and
effort has won over his mother.
“That's when I realized that he
really wanted to do this, and I
knew if it was just a whim, it
would have passed by now,” she
said.
Flying lessons do not come
cheaply, agreed mother and son,
but earning his pilot's license
and instrument reading rating
are also earning the high school
junior college credits in aviation.
If Peter Yurchision earns all
possible ratings up to his com-
mercial pilot's license, he could
complete up to 22 college cred-
its. And since he would like to
make flying part of his future
career choice, Yurchision is well
ahead of the game in his college
career, as well.
“I probably like the excitement
of flying the most,” Peter said. “It
is definitely fun, and I'm glad I
started taking lessons. It has
been worth it.”
Q: Where do you find the most Back Mountain news each week? A: Only in The Dallas Post
LifeSmarts
(continued from page 1)
whiz, said he was not nervous
coming into the tournament,
and was eager to see the other
team’s Dallas would be compet-
ing against.
“I don’t think it is a matter of
being nervous for the tourna-
ment,” said Kastenbaum, before
the tournament. “At the worst,
we could be the ninth best team
in the state. That's not too bad.”
Opello and Swatko heard
about the chance to make the
team from Wega, one of their
teachers.
“Erica and I have Mrs. Wega
for class, and she told us about
taking the test online,” said
Opello. “I'm glad I took the test.
I took the test because there
was nothing else to do that day,
and made the team.”
Morgan is a member of the
school’s trivia club, which won
the regional championship for
Scholastic Bowl, a competition
that tests students’ academic
knowledge, in September. That
team will be in action again Ng
May at the state finals.
“It's pretty nice to be in the
state finals,” said Morgan. “We
have worked hard, and wanted
to do well.”
Y PIT IW Dr RINE Ng
Smart in life. The Dallas High School team, from left, kneeling: o
Fi
Ricky Branco, Ryan Morgan and Ryan Kastenbaum. Standing:
Kathy Wega, team advisor; Janelle Opello, Erica Swatko and Frank
Galicki, principal.
School project
(continued from page 1)
but it was later found that
some areas were as much as
eight to 16 inches thick. He also
said steel beams, which are to
be used for the roof of the nata-
torium, were delayed in coming
to the school.
In June, renovations will be-
gin on many of the classrooms,
Griffiths said.
Gallo also said construction
on the new gymnasium floor is
now underway.
“(After the gymnasium, locker
rooms and pool are finished) ir®®*
mid May we expect to start ren-
ovations in the cafeteria, library,
auditorium and science rooms,”
said Griffiths.
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