MBAs take flight with Wharton Wings

Wharton students who have dreamt of flying had their big chance last week.

For $55, Wharton graduate students attended a “Learn to Fly Day” last Friday, sponsored by Wharton Wings — an aviation club for MBA candidates.

Held at the Northeast Philadelphia Airport, less than 20 miles north of Center City, 50 students completed 96 take-off and landings.

After watching a half-hour instructional video, the students went up in the air in small propeller planes.

“We would do the taxiing, the take-off and all the actual flying,” first-year Wharton MBA Victor Lee said. “It was the first experience the majority of us had ever had in one of the small planes, much less actually operating and controlling the entire procedure from nearly start to finish.”

The program was geared toward people who were novices, so the instructor co-pilots were ready to quickly fix any mistakes.

Since members of Wharton Wings are interested in a variety of aspects of the aerospace industry, the students also toured a private jet and learned more about the jet charter business.

“The charter industry is a big business at Wharton,” first-year MBA and Wharton Wings Vice President Josh Kowitt said. “In a lot of the classes I’ve had already, we talk about the aviation business frequently.”

According to Kowitt, there are also a lot of students in Wharton’s MBA Program who are former pilots — from the military to aircraft manufacturers.

“A surprising amount of my classmates have been involved in the industry,” he said.

Many of those who had not flown in the past call aviation a new hobby.

“There were some people who wanted to get right back into it immediately,” Lee said.

Though Lee doubts that he could seriously focus on flying until he’s done with school, he said some participants want to start taking lessons twice a week.

“I’m now more sure than ever that I want to get a flying license,” first-year MBA Carissa Abbott claimed. “I got a great taste of what it would be like to fly alone.”

Since more than 30 students who signed up for “Learn to Fly Day” were not able to attend due to capacity regulations, Kowitt hopes to have at least one more similar event this year.

“I think a lot of people have a childhood dream of flying,” he said. “Everyone really loved it.”

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