Just an Average Day…

by Richard Santi

Hello again! As a Flight Student at Embry-Riddle, I wanted to share with you what my average day looks like. I can honestly say that no two days are the same, and from week to week I am constantly working on a new challenge in flight training or classwork, so it is pretty hard to try and formulate an “average day”. For help, I went back and consulted the calendar on my cell phone where I keep my basic daily schedule. This day is modeled after a random Wednesday this past January.

8:30am-10:00am Flying Eagle Two!

I wake up as I do on most days when I am flying with a bit of extra excitement, though nowadays that happens about five or six days a week. My practice slot for flying Eagle Two starts promptly at 8:30am. As much as I love coffee, it is dehydrating so I will wait for my morning cup until after I’m done flying. I’ll have just water for now. I want to arrive about 20-30 minutes early so that I can look over the weather and see if there is any specific airport notes for the day. Plus I want plenty of time in the aircraft to make sure I can start my preflight aircraft inspection early.

As a member of the Golden Eagles Flight Team, we get a set amount of practice slots flying our specialty Cessna C150s. Part of our competitions are the competitive landings events, where our goal is to land with our wheels touching down as close as possible to the “zero line” (a line of tape on the runway). My personal record is 4 feet off, so I am still looking to my ultimate goal of touching down perfectly on the line. As simple as that sounds, the real trick to the competition is that there is a multitude of different penalties you can get, all related to not flying a perfect pattern. Penalties such as floating, dragging, ballooning, overshooting, undershooting, plus many more, can all be called against a pilot who does not perfectly manage the aircraft’s position and energy. A lot of practice is required to really nail down the technique. As much fun as it is, the practice slot I have this morning will be hard work requiring a lot of focus and attention.

I do my preflight inspection, hop in and start up. I am able to fit in about 12 landings before I have to call for a full stop. Overall, a productive practice slot.

10:00am-11:00am Heading Over to Campus

I finish my slot at about 10 o’clock and head over to campus. I go to Scholar’s Café in the Library to get one of their delicious cappuccinos… finally getting my morning coffee. I know my day will be a busy one, so I head upstairs and sit in one of the big comfy chairs by a window that overlooks campus for the next 30 minutes to relax and enjoy the view of Granite Mountain out the window. I review my Eagle Slot, thinking about what I could do better for next time.

11:00am-2:00pm Class

My first class of the day is AS.408 which is Flight Safety. During the lecture, we review a couple of different topics, but we spend most of the time reviewing a major aviation accident that occurred in the past few decades. We look at the NTSB report, and meticulously dissect what the pilots did that affected the outcome of that accident, either for good or bad. I leave the lecture with a new perspective on airmanship, as well as a lesson that might save my life one day!

I head to my next class which is AS.380, also known as Pilot Career Planning. Given I am a second semester Junior, it is an appropriate time to start thinking about how to plan for my career. Today we talk about proper etiquette and good strategies to have while doing an interview with an airline. Obviously something that will come in handy!

My last class of the day is AS.405, or Aviation Law. My professor is a licensed Aviation Attorney who always has something very interesting to talk about. In today’s class, we play a fun game of Jeopardy! to review for an upcoming test. One of the topics I find most interesting is federal airspace authority, and how different aviation businesses have gone to court when a state government tried to in some way regulate their flight operations, claiming it a violation of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958. I leave class and grab a quick lunch before my next activity!

2:00pm-5:00pm Student Job

I am very lucky to have the opportunity to be a tour guide on campus, working as a Senior Campus Ambassador at our Admissions Office. There are tons of student jobs one can get on campus, from working in one of the academic departments, to one of the business offices, and much more. I have friends who are even dispatchers at the Flight Line! Today I’ll be taking a few families and showing them around our awesome flight department!

5:00pm-7:00pm Homework / Relax

I get off work with a few free hours, so I head on home and grab a snack. Depending on my homework load, I’ll spend the next few hours finishing up some homework assignments and projects, or study for an upcoming exam. However, it has been a long day so I watch a TV show to slow my mind down for a bit first.

7:00pm-8:00pmFlight Team Ground Practice

I had the awesome opportunity to fly Eagle Two this morning, but on the Golden Eagles Flight Team we also compete in ground aviation knowledge, something we are all required to participate in to earn our flying slots. For the next hour, I study some aircraft for our Aircraft Identification event (we also watch a cool airplane video to start each practice). There are roughly 3,000 airplanes in our bank of aircraft we study, so there is a lot of work that goes into keeping them all memorized. There are definitely some interesting facts I’ve learned about certain aircraft that I didn’t know before!

After 8:00pmThe End of the Day

After practice, my roommate Colin (also on the flight team) and I will go home and cook dinner, or we might go out to eat somewhere locally with a couple of friends. After dinner, the rest of the evening’s activities will depend on numerous factors. If I have a busy homework night, that might be what I end up doing, but most of the time I am able to get that done earlier in the day. We’ll usually go over to a friend’s place to hang out and just enjoy the evening. My first class on Thursdays is not until 1:25pm, so normally I might be able to sleep in the next morning. But tomorrow I am going on a training flight with my instructor and we’ll be practicing commercial maneuvers, so I go to bed to make sure I am well rested for the fun day of flying I’ll have tomorrow!

Spread Your Wings at Embry-Riddle

by Richard Santi

Hi Everyone! My name is Richard Santi and I am currently a Senior at Embry-Riddle in Prescott. I am majoring in Aeronautical Science – Fixed Wing, with a minor in Business Administration. On campus, I am a member of our national championship winning Golden Eagles Flight Team, and work as a Senior Campus Ambassador at our Admissions Office (If you come and visit campus, I might be your tour guide)! 

I am incredibly excited to be sharing a bit about my experience at Embry-Riddle with all of you, and will be writing to you regularly, so be sure to check back! I wanted to start off by introducing myself a bit more and sharing with you my journey to Embry-Riddle. I am originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, and grew up in the Chicago area. From a young age, my eyes were always turned skyward, and I could only dream of one day working in the cockpit of an airplane. When I was looking at colleges that had aviation programs, only one stood out to me as the very best. I asked different people who were in the aviation business what school they suggested, and the answer was almost unanimous. “Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.” Without a doubt. 

I have always been a Midwesterner. Most of the landscapes I was used to were farms and skyscrapers. But after all, college is a time for adventure and I was very excited to see a new place for a few years, moving to the beautiful mountains of Arizona. I moved to Prescott in the summer of 2017. I only had about 4 flight hours in my logbook; virtually nothing. No real flight training or formal flight education. Despite this, I flew my very first week here. The first lesson was incredibly simple. How to turn the aircraft left and right using proper rudder coordination. I remember feeling very comfortable, knowing this is what I was meant to do, but I also remember the feeling that I had a long way to go.   

As it turns out, a long way is not so long when you are training at Embry-Riddle. Three more years of flight training and now I am a licensed Commercial Pilot. I have over 270 hours of flight time and have flown in collegiate flying competitions. I have a job offer from a major regional airline and plan on starting flight instructor training soon. I have learned about topics I knew pretty much nothing about before coming to college. Extensive details of aircraft systems, how the stability of the atmosphere affects thunderstorms, the detailed aerodynamics of a tailspin… All topics I had literally zero understanding of prior to coming to Embry-Riddle. All of this was done while simultaneously earning a college degree.

The reason I am mentioning all of this is that I wanted to let you all know that as I post my future blogs, I will be explaining in detail all of my cool experiences at Embry-Riddle, whether it is going through flight training, being on the flight team, or hanging out with friends and enjoying all of the awesome scenery that Prescott has to offer. But really, the main point I would like you to take away from my experience is that whatever you do here, you will learn way more than you thought possible. You will gain way more skills than you thought possible, and you will become someone ready to succeed in whatever field you go into. You will do all of it while having a blast! 

I look forward to sharing more with you!

Behind the Scenes of Preview Day as a Campus Ambassador

A loud obnoxious noise threw me unapologetically out of a completely sound sleep at 5:30 am PST on Saturday morning April 2, 2016. Now this isn’t normal. I don’t even wake up this early for class during the week. However, today is special. Today is one of the biggest days for the Admissions Office and for our entire campus. A mandatory workday is hard for every student employee but Preview Day is the most rewarding and most enjoyable event we have the pleasure of working once a year.

This year brought with it a staggering record number of over 370 students and their families. That’s an astonishing number that I am incredibly proud of. Seeing just how much our campus has expanded and grown and is continuing to grow in just the 4 years I have been here is the most rewarding feeling a student of this campus could feel. People are starting to discover our secret – a secret that we have hidden a mile high in the most exquisite state anyone could have the pleasure of being able to study in.

Campus Ambassadors

Campus Ambassadors

Preview Day always reminds me of the reason I ultimately decided to become a Campus Ambassador for the Prescott, AZ campus. As a student employee at Preview Day we provide customer service to our visitors. We transport them to designated locations on campus, provide requested information, represent the face of Embry-Riddle, and ensure that our visitors are given the ultimate initiation into the Eagle family.

Before the Welcome

Before the Welcome

Each one of our Student Ambassadors prides themselves on ensuring that every one of our visitors feel as if Embry-Riddle is their second home because, lets be honest, now that your child has been accepted into our University you have officially become family. Welcome! You have truly found your second home. The city of Prescott’s motto explains it perfectly, “Prescott Everybody’s Hometown.” Being the first impression of campus and helping a student figure out the first step in launching their careers is an invaluable feeling that I don’t take for a granted, even for a second.

PVD groupThis year I was given the role of administering flight line tours to families that were interested in touring the state of the art equipment that we have available for our flight students that propels them into their respected career. Showing students and their families around the flight line, accompanied by the best co-workers a student employee could possibly ask for, made Preview Day 2016 that much more of a phenomenal experience. We had the great pleasure of ensuring that every single one of the new additions to our Embry-Riddle family had a grand welcome.

 

As a senior, I am beyond pleased to see that the future of our Embry-Riddle community will not only continue to live out the goal of our campus, but will also surpass and rewrite the history of this campus helping to propel the Prescott, AZ campus into a bright future. I am so eager to come back to visit as an Alumni.

 

Ernie the Eagle!

PVD fun

AFROTC – Answers to Your Questions

Hey there everyone per request I am dedicating this post to answering some important questions about AFROTC at Embry-Riddle Prescott!

  1. This is a major question: How do I join ROTC?
  • There are a few ways to join. You can apply for a scholarship at the AFROTC website and if you get the scholarship you will bring that here to Embry-Riddle OR you can simply sign up! I recommend signing up with the detachment well before you arrive on campus. However, if you are not sure about it until the last minute or even part way through a semester you can probably still join.
  • When you join I highly encourage you to attend “zero week” it starts a few days before the “normal” students arrive on campus. Being at “zero week” allows you to get an edge on all the other cadets as you receive uniforms, basic training on marching/customs/courtesies, and you can get all your in processing paper work done. It saves you a lot of time and stress later.

2. Is everyone who joins guaranteed a scholarship?

  • Unfortunately, no. If you do not come in with a scholarship you compete against your classmates to receive one. So keep in mind that you must perform well during your first semester, this includes keeping your GPA up! With that said Detachment 028 is well known for getting tons of scholarships and awards so this is definitely the best detachment to join!

3. How should I prepare?

  • The best way to prepare is to exercise!!!!!!!!!!! We take a physical fitness assessment known as the PFA. It consists of a 1.5 mi run 1 minute of pushups and 1 minute of situps. If you can’t pass a PFA you can’t stay in the Detachment so please come prepared! We want to help you succeed as a cadet and fitness is the one factor that you have ABSOLUTE control of.
  • If you can join a JROTC unit to prepare then you will already have a basic knowledge of AF drill, customs, and courtesies. If not, don’t worry about it. We will teach you when you arrive 🙂

If you have additional questions please feel free to ask them below or give us a call at 928-777-6600 you will directed to the AFROTC office where you can get all the info you need!!!! Thanks for reading!

Explore Sedona – The Weekend Getaway

Sedona, one of the most iconic cities in Arizona, lies just 1.5 hours north of Prescott. With it’s towering red rock formations, hundreds of miles of hiking trails, and bustling village Sedona is the perfect weekend getaway or day trip for Embry Riddle students. Check out the video below as Colton show’s off some of Sedona’s beauty!

https://youtu.be/NXgFORv2w7U

All Wrapped up for the Fall Semester!

It’s official, the semester is finally over and our new graduates are on their way!! (check out our photos)

As everyone heads home for the holidays its a wonderful time of year here in Prescott, AZ and I’m sure we are all ready for a break. However, most students must travel quite a ways to get home so, in order to expedite the trip home and ensure that you do so safely, here are some travel tips!

  1. Get plenty of rest the night before you leave town, especially if you are driving!
  2. If you are driving DO NOT drive more than 6 hours without taking a break. Also remain vigilant as other drivers may not be as good of a driver as you and could cause an accident.
  3. For our flyers, take lots of vitamin C so you don’t catch a cold on those crowded planes.
  4. If you have a place off campus be sure to turn down your heat to 55-60 F, turn off all the lights, close all windows and doors, etc. before you leave.

Brief but, useful tips! I hope that everyone has safe travels back home this year and hopefully we will see our returning students again soon. Thanks for reading everyone!!

A Photographic Journey Through the Beauty of Prescott, Arizona

In the following blog, Colton takes you on a visual journey through some of Prescott’s most iconic scenery. You can click on the image to view a larger version.

First we start off with Thumb Butte, one of the highest points in Prescott.

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Thumb Butte and the surrounding area looks just as stunning in the Winter

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Next, we take a look at the lakes near to Embry-Riddle campus (Watson and Willow Lake).

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My friends and I often take our multirotors out to the lake for some aerial photos and video.

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This is the back of Watson Lake dam

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One of my favorite spots in Prescott is Spruce Mountain Lookout. From the top of the mountain you are rewarded with a beautiful view of Prescott below.

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Glowing Mountains

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Another hidden gym is Prescott’s Lynx Creek system. In winter/spring the creek flows with snowmelt and produces gorgeous scenery.

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Our final destination is Prescott’s Downtown Courthouse square. The square presents beautiful colors in the fall as well as spring, and in the winter the entire courthouse and surroundings are covered with Christmas lights. For more info on that see this blog -> https://riddlenationaz.erau.edu/tag/lights/

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Included below are a few more photos that showcase some random but amazing scenery surrounding Prescott, Arizona.

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And to close it up, a few shots of/around Embry Riddle campus!

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If you have any questions feel free to comment below!

-Colton Campbell

 

 

Watch Student UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) Club

In today’s video blog, Colton gives you a glimpse into one of the most popular on-campus attractions for Riddle students… The UAS club!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEU0xwbdHu0&feature=youtu.be

 

For more information, comment below to get in contact with someone!

Stay tuned for more exciting videos about life at Embry Riddle and its surroundings.

One Month Left of the Fall Semester…

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It is simply amazing how quickly the semester flies by. It seems like yesterday I was finally getting used to my course schedule! For our current Freshmen I’m sure this is an exciting time because next semester you won’t be the newest people on the block and you will get to go see your families over break.

However, this exciting time of year is also a very tiring time of year as classes are starting to wrap up. It is very tempting to just roll over and go back to sleep or even skip one assignment. This isn’t the best decision though, there is still some time left to make or break those grades so keep it together!

As a four year “veteran” of Embry-Riddle Prescott’s Fall semester I highly encourage you to take a small break from reality on the weekends but continue working hard. The end of the semester is like the last mile in a 12 mile hike — you are tired and you want to sleep but you are almost to the top of the mountain. You can’t give up yet!!!

For our students who we will be meeting next Fall, the same applies to you!! I know there is this whole Senioritis thing that is “tradition” in high school but do not allow that “tradition” to keep you from graduating. Without that diploma we here at Embry-Riddle won’t be able to support you as you make it through your years in college and shoot for that dream job.

You are almost there, one semester down and a few more to go!!

Student Employment Opportunities

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There are a lot of student jobs available on campus! Being a student employee has its perks such as tons of hours each week, the occasional free lunch, and meeting some interesting people. Additionally, according to student employees I talked to, on-campus jobs are better than off-campus jobs because when you are not busy you can do homework. A few student employees mentioned that having a campus job has taught them how to perform in a professional atmosphere as most campus jobs are office oriented unlike the typical labor-based off-campus position.

Once you arrive on campus you are eligible for one of these jobs. First semester freshman are hired but the campus staff sometimes prefer to hire second semester freshman as they have had a chance to adjust to life in college and are more likely to be able to balance their schedule in their second semester.

A wide range of jobs are open to students. You can be a tutor, grader, IT employee, grounds keeper, lab monitor, lab assistant, tour guide, office filer, summer camp leader, orientation leader, pool employee, and the list goes on! You could even be a student blogger like I am! So if you are interested in getting a job to augment your monthly income get your resume ready and apply today! It is super simple, just check out the student services tab on your Embry Riddle Dashboard to apply.

Thanks for reading!