Gordonsville Airport hosted Cub Scout Aviation Day on Saturday, September 9 to introduce youth to various exciting opportunities available in aviation.

A total of 200 Cub Scouts from across central Virginia attended the event and participated in hands on STEM related activities. Approximately 750 attendees were in attendance throughout the day, including Cub Scouts, family members, volunteers and exhibitors.

The Virginia Department of Aviation’s ICON A5 Introduction to Flight Team was on site to provide scouts with a thrilling hands-on learning tool. Scouts were able to sit in the light sport amphibious aircraft and operate the flight controls while learning about how airplanes fly.

Several attendees were also able to experience flying a Gleim simulator. They could take off virtually from a nearby airport and practice flying and landing a Cessna with the simulator. DOAV staff was available to answer questions from Cub Scouts and family members about the different careers available in aviation.

“I would absolutely recommend the ICON A5 Introduction to Flight Team to anyone interested in sharing the possibilities of flight and aviation,” Cub Scout Aviation Day Director Daman Irby said. “Our scouts loved it and were willing to stand patiently in line to experience the exhibit. All left excited about flight and interested in learning more.”

Cub Scouts participated in additional activities throughout the day, including robotics and remote-control airplane demonstrations. They learned about propulsion with balloon rockets and water bottle rockets. Scouts also experienced how speed and movement can create sound, made kites, studied air pressure using basketballs inflated at different levels, made compasses, and learned how ham radio works.

During the evening, Cub Scouts attended a presentation in an inflatable planetarium hosted by the UVA Department of Astronomy’s “Dark Skies, Bright Kids” program. They also had the opportunity to use the Charlottesville Astronomical Society’s telescopes to view Saturn and other night sky objects. Families were able to camp overnight at the airport.