A Pilot's Pause for Reflection: Reflecting on the Private Pilot Pinning Ceremony
This reflection was written by Captain William F. Colleran, '04.
The College of Aeronautics and Engineering would like to thank Capt. and Mrs. Colleran for their leadership, partnership, and generosity in the inspiration, ideation, and execution of the inaugural Private Pilot Pinning Ceremony in September 2022. It is with great honor and pride that we continue this ceremony, annually, and celebrate the major milestone in a young pilot's career.
You may have seen many pilots walking around with some pretty awesome wings with the Kent State “K” lately. You may wonder what are those wings? Why do they have the Kent State “K” on them and how do I get a set? Are they for sale at the pilot shop? NO.
Last summer I approached the Dean and her staff to discuss about adding the Pilot Pinning Ceremony at Kent State and creating Kent State’s first ever official set of pilot wings. The basis of the pilot pinning ceremony was not only to reward those who have achieved their Private Pilot Certificate or completion of their first flying course at Kent, but to do much more.
As a major airline pilot, when I get ready every day to fly, I pin my Captain wings on my shirt and jacket. The wings are a symbol of my training, authority, and accomplishments. They are a sign to my passengers that I am competent, safe, and have proven myself to be in command of the aircraft.
While brainstorming the ceremony I wanted to create an annual tradition to reward the students of Kent State for their hard work and dedication to flying. I wanted to be able to give the students of Kent State something they would cherish for life. Something for them to look back on and remember their time at Kent State.
The private pilot certificate is the basis for all certificates while en route to becoming a professional pilot. It can be said to be one of the most fun and enjoyable certificates at the same time the hardest certificate to earn. It is the private pilot certificate where one learns from his instructor and is then one day told you will make your first flight in the aircraft solo.
The Pilot Pinning Ceremony was not only a way to showcase the pilot's accomplishment, but to show the Kent State pilots where they can be with hard work, dedication, and mentorship. In our first year, we had an overwhelming amount of responses from our alumni when we proposed the idea to them and invited them to come back and participate in the ceremony. For some of our alumni, it was their first time back in many years. They were able to see the growth of the program, our new facilities and aircraft. With over 30 alumni returning to Kent State from Major Airlines, Fortune 500 Corporate Flight Departments, and Cargo carriers to hand out wings we were able to give our first group of pilots their wings and mentors to get our newest pilots to their dream job. Our Alumni personally handed out over 100 sets of pilot wings to the newest members of the greatest fraternity of pilots, The Kent State Pilots.
So when you see a set of Kent State Wings know these wings were not just handed out, they were earned. Many long days and nights of studying, missed time with family and friends, and a sincere desire to achieve a dream; the dream to fly.
These Kent State Pilots proudly wearing these wings have now proven to be safe, competent, and successful pilots. I look forward to seeing our next group of pilots receive their wings this year!
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The next Private Pilot Pinning Ceremony is tentatively scheduled for the evening of Thursday, September 7th.
For more information about this ceremony and how to get involved, please click here.