WISE GISE Camp

We had a fantastic opportunity with the University of Michigan Girls in Science and Engineering (UM WISE GISE) day camp to take the campers on a tour of Delta Air Line (DL)'s hangar facilities and various stops within the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW). Along with Max and Prof. Gökçin Çınar, the campers learned about aircraft (we saw an Airbus A330!), aircraft design, aircraft maintenance, airline and airport operations, and air traffic control.

First up, the Delta Air Line hangars! We were super excited to see an Airbus A330 aircraft in the hangar, and got to walk around it, taking in the sheer size of the aircraft. Maintenance activities were occurring on the starboard engine, and we got to see how complex the engine components were by peering inside it while the cowling was partially opened. We also were given a tour of the cabin interiors and the flight deck!

After the hangars, we made our way into DTW (passing through a TSA security checkpoint, of course!), where we split into groups to go see various airport facilities (e.g., passenger lounges) and the ramp control towers at the Edward H. McNamara Terminal, which handles predominantly Delta Air Lines flights. The campers saw how ramp controllers meticulously look after aircraft around the terminals and gate/ramp areas. We were surrounded by computer displays of live airport surface camera feeds, airport surface situational displays, among others! We also visited the Delta Air Lines operations center within the McNamara Terminal, before ending our tour onboard a Boeing 717 while it was parked at the gate.

We had an absolutely fantastic time!

We could not have pulled off this tour without the careful planning and coordination between the University of Michigan, Delta Air Lines, and the Wayne County Airport Authority. We are especially grateful to Victoria Alden (Program Officer, UM Women in Science and Engineering); Matthew Virost, Matt Morawski, and Erica Donerson (all with Wayne County Airport Authority); Kevin Kowalczyk, Ryan Wisniewski, Karen Montgomery, Dennis Rush, Michael Perrin, and Scott Harris (all with Delta Air Lines). 

Thank you!