Early Monday morning, Ryan Erb sat behind the controls of an Austin Peay Guimbal Cabri G2 helicopter at the Clarksville Regional Airport and eased the craft off the ground. In doing so, the Hopkinsville, Kentucky, firefighter became the first student to fly solo in Austin Peay State University’s new aviation science program, which launched last year as the state’s first helicopter flight school that awards bachelor’s degrees. The program’s director, Charles W. Weigandt, announced the news in an email to APSU President Alisa White: “Today marked a major milestone for the APSU aviation program. Mr. Ryan Erb completed his first solo flight.”
Other students in Erb’s class – Rotor-Wing Private Pilot Lab I – will take their solo flights soon, accumulating 18 hours of flight during the class.