Major Gift Officially Opened by Aviation Faculty

Published 06.28.2012

News
Aviation
Faculty & Staff

FedEx Express' William Smith gives faculty an unprecedented view.Like more orthodox Penn College classes, a small teacher-to-student ratio allows for personalized interaction.Getting up-to-speed for students' benefitGroup instruction, in a "classroom" large enough to handle the crowdWith students' return less than two months away, Penn College aviation faculty this week received concentrated training in a unique laboratory setting: a hulking Boeing 727-200F donated to the School of Transportation Technology in March after its retirement from the FedEx Express delivery fleet. Teaching the Operation and Maintenance Familiarization class was FedEx Express TechOps Manager William Smith, who offered faculty (joined by Nick Magro, a mechanic for Majot Aviation Services in South Bend, Ind.) the same blend of classroom instruction and hands-on aircraft access to which excited Lumley Aviation Center majors will be exposed in the fall.