By Phillip Roberts
Phil Roberts has been staff sponsor and coach of the LeTourneau University STING Precision Flight Team for four years. In 2022 the team achieved 3rd place in the nation for the second time (first time in 2019), and Phil received the NIFA Coach of the Year award in 2021, and then again this past season, 2023! Phil is looking forward to another chance to represent LeTourneau University on a national stage during the SAFECON (Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference)Nationals taking place in May of 2024. Keep up the great work Coach!
This fall, for the first time in nine years, LeTourneau had the opportunity to host five other teams in a regional flight competition under the banner of the National Intercollegiate Flying Association, or NIFA. NIFA’s earliest competitions trace their roots back to the post-World War 1 flying clubs of Columbia, Yale, Harvard, and Princeton. The first competition occurred in May of 1920 where huge crowds gather to watch Yale take first place with the help of future Pan American Airways founder Juan Trippe.
In 1929 Grover C. Loening, who was awarded the first-ever Aeronautical Engineering degree, established the Loening Intercollegiate Flying Trophy. His desire was to encourage, and acknowledge, the exceptional achievements of the growing collegiate aviation programs across the country. Loening, along with his friends Charles Lindbergh, Amelia Earhart, and pioneering naval aviator Commander John Towers, awarded the pure silver Tiffany designed trophy that is still awarded to selected schools to this day. Over the years, more schools continued to join NIFA and is often considered to be the equivalent to the NCAA when it comes to collegiate aviation. NIFA SAFECONs, or Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference, bring together the very best of university aviators two times each year. Each fall, there are nine different regional competitions where teams compete to qualify for a national competition much like Grover Loening was a part of back in 1929. Every year, we get to go up against the best of the best and show the country what LeTourneau aviation is all about.
In 2002 LeTourneau officially joined NIFA and started competing that fall. For the past 21 years now, LeTourneau has consistently climbed the ranks of NIFA competition, never settling for just good enough. Our team history includes nineteen years in a row winning the ground events portion of the Regional SAFECON events. LeTourneau won the Loening Trophy in 2009. And, in 2019 and 2022 (the first National SAFECON after COVID) LeTourneau finished in third place over powerhouse teams like Embry Riddle – Daytona, United States Air Force Academy, Western Michigan University, Southern Illinois University and Ohio State University. A top three finish in an event like a National SAFECON is a testament to the hard work and dedication of each team member but also the dedication to excellence in the instruction of the students in their classes. At the regional competition held here at LeTourneau’s Abbott Aviation Center this fall, we had the pleasure to host Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma, Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Louisiana Tech, and Texas State Technical College. The weather could not have been better, and we were able to finish all the flying events as scheduled. Once again, LeTourneau was able to come away with first place in both the ground and flight events as well as the overall grand champions for the event. This placement has earned the team another chance to compete on the national stage at this year’s National SAFECON in Janesville, Wisconsin.
My involvement with the team goes all the way back to when I was a competitor on the LeTourneau flight team back in the early 2000s. When I came back to work for LeTourneau, one of the things I wanted to do was to help coach the team and help give the students the experiences I had while I was on the team. NIFA can lead to many great opportunities in the industry. The industry knows what NIFA is about, and many big-name companies are represented at NIFA competitions. Many industry leaders will tell you that they will select employees from the ranks of NIFA competitors because they know the caliber of student that is required to compete well in NIFA events. While I see that important and extremely valuable, that takes on a secondary significance for me. My driving belief and goal each year with this team is that the students walk away with the knowledge that God is in control and everything we do, even competing, should be done for the glory of the Lord.
Our team verse, Colossians 3:23-24 talks about how everything we do should be with all our heart as if we were working for the Lord. The team’s two aircraft tail-numbers, 323LU and 324LU, help remind us daily of that Colossians 3:23-24 mindset. Everything we do, whether it is landing a plane, dropping a message drop container, taking a ground test, or interacting with other teams, always offer the opportunity to shine the light of Christ. My hope is that every student who competes would always strive to serve the Lord in everything we do and shine His light for his glory and His kingdom.
Phil Roberts has been staff sponsor and coach of the LeTourneau University STING Precision Flight Team for four years. In 2022 the team achieved 3rd place in the nation for the second time (first time in 2019), and Phil received the NIFA Coach of the Year award in 2021, and then again this past season, 2023! Phil is looking forward to another chance to represent LeTourneau University on a national stage during the SAFECON (Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference) Nationals taking place in May of 2024. Keep up the great work Coach!
