Central Washington University student Beth Klingele became one of a few women to fly as a solo pilot in a Breezy airplane last month, according to a news release.
Klingele’s flight took place just before sunset on Sept. 30.
“Private pilot, CWU student, and my former grade ‘A’ calculus student, Beth Klingele, squeaked her first solo landing in Mr. Breezy,” Michael Lundin wrote in an email. Lundin is a member of the Experimental Aircraft Association group in Ellensburg and a pilot.
The Breezy is a small brand aircraft that was built by members of the Ellensburg chapter 492 of the Experimental Aircraft Association. There’s no metal skin surrounding the pilot or passenger and only a light-weight metal frame supports the sturdy platform with rudimentary flight controls and two seats.
Everything is out in the open, including the gasoline engine. Federal Aviation Administration inspectors checked the craft for air-worthiness and safety in September 2010, and its first flight was July 20, 2011.
There are only 47 airplanes of this type listed in the FAA Registry, and only one woman listed as a manufacturer or owner, according to the release.