College Students Enjoy Rides in the Sky

Of the numerous flying objects that typically pass over Harvard’s athletic fields, none come close in size or scale to what took off for its maiden voyage on Saturday morning: a bright yellow helicopter.

The flight—one of a series that took groups of three passengers into Boston’s airspace—was the first ride hosted by the Harvard College Aviation Club, which received official student group status this fall.

“I’d seen aerial photos, but it was incredible to see it myself,” Hao Sun ’10 said.

Following the Charles River, the 10 a.m. flight featured aerial views of Cambridge, downtown Boston, and the Boston Harbor, including such landmarks as Memorial Hall, MIT, and the Massachusetts State House.

Most of the flight went smoothly—until the helicopter began to round Boston’s skyscrapers.

“The buildings act like a mountain range,” pilot Philip Greenspun explained as the helicopter circled the John Hancock Tower, “so it’s natural to experience some turbulence.”

Since he obtained his pilot’s licence in 2001, Greenspun—a computer science affiliate at MIT—said he has logged over 2,000 hours of flight time including a flight from Los Angeles to Alaska.

The rotors of the helicopter stirred up clouds of snow as it landed on the fields of the Gordon Track and Tennis Center.

During the flight, contact was maintained with the Boston Logan Air Traffic Control Tower at all times.

Several Harvard students went along for the helicopter ride. Passenger Daniel E. Catomeris ’11 brought a camera and a crew mate along to document his journey for “On Harvard Time.”

“It was incredible,” Catomeris said.

When it came to events involving flying aircraft, it took the aviation club a good deal of maneuvering to get an idea off the ground.

Planning for Saturday’s event began in October, according to club president Emanuel Beica ’11.

The group had to find a field with no physical obstacles, obtain permission to use the space, and get clearance from Harvard University Police Department before takeoff.

Mark Van Baalen, a lecturer in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, said he was excited to see a revived interest in aviation at Harvard.

Since the school organized the first Harvard Air Meet at Squantum Point in 1923, there were a lot of attempts to reincarnate the Harvard Flying Club that has been around in one form or another since the 1920s, according to Van Baalen, who received his pilot’s license in 1969.

“[Reviving an aviation club] is a good idea, and I hope it’s successful,” he said.

Proceeds from Saturday’s event went to establishing a library for Harvard students studying for a pilot’s license. Each flight cost 20 dollars per person.