While most high school students were spending their summer at the beach or at the swimming pool, JROTC Cadet Jonas Dillon-Sauer from Irmo High School was earning her private pilots license.
She was one of a hundred JROTC cadets selected from a pool of about a 1,000 applicants worldwide to participate in the Air Force JROTC Flight Academy. The Flight Academy began in 2018 to help recruit young students into the world of aviation. For the past few years there has been a shortage of pilots in the aviation community. This program was designed to help bolster those dwindling numbers. Dillon-Sauer is the first female and the first ever student from Irmo High School to be selected for this honor.
As a rising senior at Irmo High School and a part of the Irmo High School Air Force JROTC program for the past 3 years, Dillon-Sauer was also selected to be the Group Commander of the 155-member unit this coming school year. After a highly competitive selection process, she was sent to Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi where she began an intense eight-week program that taught cadets how to fly an airplane. The selection process is strong as the students must have high GPAs, be the required age, complete an essay and have an aptitude for aviation.
“I want a career in military aviation,” said Dillon-Sauer. “I plan to apply to both Navy and Air Force Academies.”
The cadets attended classes everyday for 8-10 hours with classwork studies, homework, and flying lessons. Dillon-Sauer was recently graduated from the program on July 24 and earned her private pilots license at the age of 17.
“We really didn’t know what to expect,” Dillon-Sauer said. “There was a lot to learn but we flew daily including night flying.”
Air Force Junior ROTC’s primary mission is to develop citizens of character, in this aspect, students have a chance to earn their private pilot’s license, gain a positive college experience and receive 12 college credits. Overall, this program is equivalent to a $30,000 scholarship, the cost for one cadet to complete the program, completely paid for with Air Force JROTC funding. The Air Force will continue to support Dillon-Sauer by paying for her continued education in aviation and keeping her pilot’s license current. There was no shortage of crop dusters in that part of Georgia and Dillon-Sauer saw plenty.
“While flying solo, I received a traffic alert in the cockpit but didn’t see anything until suddenly one flew right over the top of my aircraft,” she said.
“We are so proud of Jonas and her amazing accomplishment. What an opportunity to earn your private pilots license before you enter your senior year of high school,” Major Jason Huffman, the Senior Instructor of Irmo High School AF JROTC said. “Jonas has always strived to achieve great things and completing this program is a testament to her determination. I hope her doing this sets a precedent for other young aspiring students interested in aviation for them to follow in her footsteps and also earn their own private pilot license. This is an amazing opportunity only offered through Air Force JROTC and is just one of many valuable benefits from the program.”
The Air Force Academy has Dillon-Sauer flying least once every 90 days and continuing with her education.
“Once you are in the air it’s easier than driving a car,” she said.
