Aiken High School received a special visit on Sept. 28.
The Army Virtual Air Rescue Experience Semi-Truck made a stop at the high school after evacuating from Florida, said Sgt. First Class Joshua Sulkers. He reached out to Nina Dorman, the career specialist at Aiken High School, and asked if AHS would host the Army simulator. The experience allowed the students to participate in a virtual helicopter simulation.
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“What I find impressive is when the students put on the gear and started playing the simulation, there was complete concentration and participation and that is rare in today’s society,” Dorman said. “The kids that have come out of the program have been impressed and we are very excited about this opportunity to share with our kids.”
Students from different classes came out to the simulation, including from the ROTC and advanced networking classes, Dorman said.
“We’ve had networking come out, our advanced networking classes because of the cyber connection and then we have our science department, specifically our physics classes coming out because of the connection with physics and aviation. So we have the core subjects, and the leadership course is coming out,” Dorman said.
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During the experience, students sat in a chair, put on virtual googles and ear sets and flew helicopters while trying to put out a fire. For senior Maya Cianni, it was a fun experience.
“I thought it was pretty cool. We had a similar experience last year when we went to Patriots Point in Charleston, but I think this one was cooler, it was like a VR kind of headset thing. So the chairs felt like you were actually inside the helicopter, and they would rock you around, and then the controls were a lot more easier to handle for me. You just had to put out the fire and then get the water from the tank and all that stuff.” Cianni said.
Around 20 students and staff members gathered at Kennedy Middle School on Wednesday morning for See You at the Pole.
Sulkers said he wanted the truck to visit the high school because of what it shows students.
“We wanted the truck to come here because it gives us an opportunity to show what the Army has to offer to the students in high school and express some of the career benefits they can get,” Sulkers said.