a 16 y/o named Jean-Luck Duckworth, a scholarship of flight lessons toward
his pilot's license. The funds had been collected by donation and as a
payback from EAA, a collective effort of the dedicated pilots who fly Young
Eagles each third Saturday. They were limited funds, probably not
enough for the complete course but enough to get him hooked. Jean took
to the air with a great interest, and Juan Carlos, the owner and manager of
Wings Flight School began as his instructor. That flight training was
hit and miss for several months but now, with Jean-Luck parents helping with
the funding, Jean-Luck is headed for his certificate. We learned on
Tuesday night, at our EAA 1230 meeting, that Jean-Luck has been accepted into
the Air Force Academy next year. Now Jean-Luck is in a race to
finish his flight training prior to his career at the Academy.
Congratulations Jean-Luck, you are a real winner!! And thanks for all the
help with Young Eagles during the past several years. I hope to have
more information on Jean-Luck so we can learn a bit about this fine young
man. My hope is to have a column, on the EAA website, that he can write
during his Academy days.
Jean-Luc
Duckworth
- Personal
Data
- 18 y/o as of Jan.
- Currently live in Wilton, CA (just east of Elk Grove)
- My GPA stands at a 4.33
- Currently ranked 8 out of the 455 students at Pleasant Grove High School
- I have created a club called "Eagle Aeronautics" at my school. Through this club, I teach a few kids how to fly model airplanes (no crashes so far :D).
- When I entered into high school, I thought I would be finding a career in the computer field right about now, but as the years progressed, I found that a career in aviation would not be impossible.
- I first visited the Air Force Academy during the summer entering my Junior year of high school for a wrestling sports camp. I decided to go, not for the sport itself, but for the experience of going to the academy. While at the sports camp, I learned of a unique opportunity for high school students entering their senior year. I applied for the "summer seminar" later that year and was told that being admitted to the summer seminar was a good indication of the chances of a real appointment. The actual academy admission process was lengthy (and for good reason) but well worth it. It started with writing various essays, performing various tests, finding various letters of recommendation, and an interview with a liaison officer for the academy itself. The second half was the application to Congressman Dan Lungren. His application required almost the same as the academy's, but with an interview on a whole different scale. Walking up to the interview, I saw other applicants in their Junior ROTC outfits and I thought that I wouldn't stand a chance to someone who has somewhat of a military background (but of course I did :D). The interview consisted of me giving a 3min presentation on homeland security followed by a series of questions by a doughnut-shaped table of commanders and retired military men and women. As time went by, I received my nomination from Dan Lungren, and, shortly there after, I received my appointment to the academy. At that moment, I knew all the hard work to make my dream come true was surely worth it.
- After the academy, I will serve my required amount of years and then I will have a choice of staying in the service or retiring and working as a commercial pilot. At this time, I do not know which one I will choose.
Our
own Duncan Miller with his Cub.