Balloonist wants to lift up local students

The Seattle Ballooning aeronautics program is looking for Highline students interested in participating in its free hot air ballooning pilot training. 

The program is focused on finding women and people of color who would like to get involved in hot air balloon piloting. 

Seattle Ballooning, a Burien-based company led by chief balloon pilot Eliav Cohen, is providing scholarships for free balloon training for young people ages 16-22.  

“Our main focus of the program is getting young people into the sport of hot air ballooning,” Cohen said. 

The program was able to grow and expand to teach a larger group of students with the support of Amazon Studios and Prime Video, which produced a movie about the first female balloon pilot embarking on a record-breaking flight.

The training program includes ground school, flight time training in Seattle Ballooning’s “Mammoth balloon,” which is a replica hot air balloon from the Amazon original movie The Aeronauts. 

Students in training will have hands-on training of operation and setup of the hot air balloons. 

Students will learn how to crew hot air balloons and can have additional training with Seattle Ballooning’s commercial flights, which includes paid opportunities.   

Ground school educational materials are $100. Students who complete their hot air balloon training hours will take a Federal Aviation Administration written test and “checkride.” 

The checkride is also known as the Practical Test, which is the final test in order to receive a pilot certification

“Students are responsible for paying for their own FAA written test, which is $200, and FAA checkride, which is $400, to get their license,” Cohen said.   

A total of 25 spots are available for the 2022 program, with minimum qualifications for students. 

Applicants must live in the greater Seattle region, from May-September, be under the age of 22, have a valid driver’s license, be able to lift 75 pounds, and have no DUI or drug convictions. 

To apply students will need to submit a short video application, and a written application once they have posted their video. 

The program’s application deadline is on March 1, 2022. 

The training will take place at Seattle Ballooning’s balloon port, right outside of Enumclaw Washington, in which students are responsible for their own transportation, and will start May 1st 2022.

For more information about the program and application process, please visit https://seattleballooning.com/getting-young-people-involved-in-ballooning-with-the-support-of-amazon-studios-and-prime-video/