Delta provided scholarships to more than 600 students to participate in an immersive learning adventure camp this summer aboard the world's largest simulated aircraft carrier at the National Flight Academy (NFA) in Pensacola, FL.
Throughout the summer, students spent six days aboard the "carrier," AMBITION at the camp. Attendance is made possible through scholarships from Delta for students in community partner organizations, in addition to children of active duty military families. The invite is extended to children in the Delta, Virgin Atlantic and Aeromexico families as well.
The NFA camp experience is geared toward 7-12th graders and designed to inspire and build upon their interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). The camp invokes critical thinking, problem solving and teamwork.
Participants live for six days in a multi-story, 102,000-square-foot facility and experience theme-park style thrills surrounded by advanced technology, flight simulators and virtual reality games and missions that ignite imagination and encourage learning.
The Ambition Experimental Pilots, or AXPs as the students are referred to while aboard, are provided a series of missions throughout the week. Each mission tests AXPs' mental agility, preparedness and communication skills, while demonstrating the importance of teamwork and goal completion. Through simulator experience and immersive role play, AXPs see firsthand how those in naval aviation respond to and mitigate emergencies in real life.
Following an action-packed week, the AXPs' Squadron Commanders and the Captain hosted a graduation ceremony to celebrate their major accomplishments. The graduation ceremony included awards, personal recognition and inspiring words from Delta's Flight Operations and TechOps teams, encouraging the students to work hard, do well in school and consider a career in aviation.
The experience at the NFA inspires students to get engaged in STEM careers and learn more about aviation, while also developing leadership, teamwork and communication skills to better prepare them for the future.
Delta's partnership with the NFA supports Community Engagement's education pillar. The airline has been partners with the NFA for the past five years and continues to grow the partnership including collaboration with Flight Operations and TechOps teams and increasing the number of scholarships for summer camps.
