UND flying team wins Region V 'SAFECON' and advances to national competition

The UND Flying Team won top honors in the Region V National Intercollegiate Flying Association’s (NIFA’s) Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference (SAFECON) recently.

UND’s winning score of 672 points gave the UND Flying Team first place in flight events and first in ground events. This SAFECON was hosted by UND in Crookston, Minn., and comprised teams from: University of Dubuque, Minnesota State University – Mankato, St. Cloud State University, University of Minnesota – Crookston and UND.

“The team came together and was ready for this air-meet,” said Lewis Liang, assistant professor of aviation and the team’s faculty advisor. “We have achieved our first goal this year, which now allows us to advance to the National Competition in 2011.”

The National SAFECON competition will be held in Columbus, Ohio, on May 16, 2011, and hosted by The Ohio State University. Thirty teams from the 11 regions around the country will compete in that National SAFECON event.

The UND Flying Team comprises aviation students who have made a voluntary commitment of their time and effort to be a part of the team. The team participates in two competitions annually: a regional qualifying competition and the national competition to determine the national championship.

The UND Flying Team members who competed were Jamie Marshall, captain; William Gardner, captain; and Brandon Anderson, David Edmonds, Jacob Lange, Matthew McGrath, Scott Meyer, Louisa Millar, Lauren Peterson, Kyle Schurb, Paul Valenstein, and Tyler Van Heel.

The UND Flying Team is a member of the National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA), the sanctioning body for the regional and national SAFECON competitions. SAFECON places a special emphasis on safety of flight operations.

UND’s Flying Team has won 16 of the last 26 national competitions, including the 2009 and 2010 National Championship.

— David L. Dodds, writer/editor, University Relations, 777-5529, daviddodds@mail.und.edu.