ANDREWS AFB, Md. –
The U.S. F/A-18 Tactical Demon-stration Team from NAS-Oceana, Va., spoke to more than 350 students, parents and teachers gathered at William Paca Elementary School in Landover, Md., recently.
With call sign names like "Jugs, Gerbil, Stag," and "Handy", the pilots were sure not to disappoint, and the crowd hung on the aerial team's every word.
"They are among the elite aviators of the Navy, and for them to come to the Joint Service Open House and William Paca Elementary School to talk to the future of our country, means a lot to the students, but also to the pilots themselves," said commander Jay Richards, NAS-Washington facility operations officer. "It's a great time to show the students the wide range of opportunities that are available to them when they get older."
"We want to impress upon the students how important an education is to their future," said Lieutenant Bryan "Stag" Pinckney, F/A-18 demo team weapons system officer. "I know when I was their age, I didn't know why math was important or how I'd use it someday. It's important to come out here and tell them that math and science is something that we use every single day in our jobs. We're here to talk about what we do, how we got to where we are today, our experience in the military and encourage the students to work hard and stay in school."
"It's a wonderful experience to bring the F/A-18 demo team to our school because many of our students have not had the opportunity to travel outside the D.C. area," said Dorothy Clowers, William Paca Elementary School principal. "By the F/A-18 demo team coming here, we're bringing the world to them. They are role models to the future of our country."
Lieutenant Brian "Handy" Lauber, F/A-18 demo team pilot, said the Navy provided him with opportunities he may not have had otherwise, including his education at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and the chance to live in Japan, which received "ooo's" and "aah's" from the young crowd.
The F/A-18 demo team fielded questions from students, which included a wide range of topics, including how fast the F/A-18 flies (about 800 mph), and how much gasoline the plane holds (over 2,000 gallons of gas) to what they eat in an airplane (usually candy bars).
Lt. Steele "Gerbil" Holley, F/A-18 demo team weapons systems officer, talked about how a good education is especially important. "I actually use math and science in my job everyday, but this knowledge didn't start when I started studying to become a pilot - it actually started when I was in school and was your age. Work hard, stay in school and maybe someday you'll be able to fly a plane, too."
Ms. Clowers said she is so dedicated to the children's education that she hired a stretch limousine to take 15 children with perfect attendance to the Joint Services Open House.