The overlap in skills between music and aviation was evident recently at the Piper Memorial Airport, when violinist William Knauth completed his first solo flight at AvSport of Lock Haven.
William, 18, a recipient of the Flying Musicians Association Solo Scholarship, completed this landmark achievement after two months of training, with an accumulated 10.2 hours of flight experience. “Our organization loves assisting others who share our passions of flying and music” commented Flying Musicians President/CEO John Zapp.  “To be able to assist and watch our student members grow through aviation and music is such a rewarding experience. We are looking for those in the aviation and music industry who want to jump on the FMA Bandwagon to be a part of this opportunity to grow aviation – the right way.”
Knauth was nominated for the prestigious scholarship by his violin teacher, Dr. Kenneth Sarch, for his dedication to music, his interest in aviation, and his commitment to both fields. After a two-week break to decompress, and prepare for his FAA Knowledge Test, William will return to AvSport of Lock
Haven on the Piper Memorial Airport for the Fall academic quarter, to continue his pilot training.
In addition to his music and flying endeavors, William is a champion golfer, and is currently taking Physics courses at Lycoming College in Williamsport PA. He has a strong connection to Lycoming. His mother is a professor of Religion there; his father is a former member of their Computer Science
faculty, and H. Paul Shuch, his flight instructor, is a retired Lycoming College Physics professor.
“William made amazing progress in his pre-solo training,” notes Shuch. “He is progressing toward his Sport Pilot license the same way he will ultimately reach Carnegie Hall: practice, practice, and practice.”
The Sport Pilot license, in which AvSport specializes, is the newest portal of entry into the world of aviation, allowing prospective pilots to become licensed in half the time, and at half the cost, of the traditional Private Pilot license. Sport Pilots fly solely for pleasure, in fair weather, during daylight hours, in simple, low-performance Light Sport aircraft.
Piper Memorial Airport is the ancestral home to the legendary Piper Cub, arguably the world’s first sport plane. Modern Light Sport aircraft allow pilots to recapture the bygone fly-for-fun Cub era, with increased reliability and improved safety. Anyone interested in learning more about sport flying is invited to browse the school’s extensive website at <http://AvSport.org>, where a wealth of free training materials awaits.
