Going for No. 13: Several members of SIU Aviation’s Flying Salukis participate in a recent flight practice before next week’s National Intercollegiate Flying Association Region VIII championships. The nationally recognized team will be going for its 13th consecutive regional title. (Photo by Russell Bailey)
October 21, 2024
SIU Flying Salukis host regional intercollegiate championships, Oct. 23-26
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Flying Salukis will be looking to win a 13th straight regional title beginning Wednesday, Oct. 23, when the team hosts the National Intercollegiate Flying Association’s Region VIII competition.
The competition will be at the Glenn Poshard Transportation Education Center and Southern Illinois Airport. Participating schools are SIU Carbondale, Lewis University and Purdue University. The top two teams from the regional will qualify for nationals, which are May 12-17, in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Nathan J. Lincoln, a senior lecturer in the aviation management and flight degree program and former Flying Saluki, has coached the squad to two of its nine national titles. The 2024 team was second in the nation, marking the 15th straight year SIU finished in the top five nationally and 12th time in 13 years SIU has been in the top three overall.
Lincoln said that the Flying Salukis’ legacy carries high expectations.
“There’s pressure on it, but I’ve always put pressure on myself to do well regardless of what any statistics in the past are saying about the team,” he said. “We are making sure that we are ready and not that anyone gets complacent in thinking that it’s automatic.”
Media Advisory
Reporters, photographers and news crews are welcome to cover the event. For more information and the event schedule, contact competition coordinator Bryan T. Harrison, an associate professor in aviation management and flight, at bharrison@aviation.siu.edu or 618-453-9240. For information on the Flying Salukis, contact coach Nathan J. Lincoln, senior lecturer, at nlinc1@siu.edu or 618-453-9250.
The event gives the program and team a chance to see how they compete against their peers, along with networking opportunities, said Chien-Tsung Lu, director of the SIU School of Aviation. It also allows the school to showcase the quality of its flight program.
“SIU Aviation has been the champion in flight competitions for many years. That means our students are talented student pilots,” he said. “Our faculty and our coaches invest a lot of time and effort to make sure that they are professional and competing to a national standard.”
Sixth time hosting regionals
This will be the sixth time SIU hosts the regional competition as they look to return to the nationals for the 55th time. SIU also hosted the regional event in 1997, 2002, 2008, 2014 and 2019.
Hosting a regional lends itself to more organizational work, including familiarizing visiting teams with the area, said Lincoln, who credits assistant coaches Mike LeFevre, Dale Miller and Matteus Thompson for their work with the team.
While the team is away from class the week of competition, “they are still going home to roommates and all of the distractions that are there. It’s not just the hotel room when we travel,” Lincoln said.
“We keep them out here typically for long hours during the week and try to keep them away from distractions so they can focus on the competition itself.”
Ground events begin Wednesday; flight events Thursday, Friday
Ground events are computer accuracy, aircraft preflight inspection, simulator ground trainer, aircraft recognition and SCAN, or simulated comprehensive aircraft navigation. Flight events, weather permitting, are short field approach and landing, power-off precision landing, navigation and message drop. The awards banquet will be held Saturday.
This year’s 18-member team was selected after classes began in August and includes five freshmen. Practices began soon after.
“We are putting in a lot of hours to make sure everyone is ready to compete,” Lincoln said. “This is a really good group. They are working really well together. We just have a lot of experience and points to replace from last year’s competition team. Hopefully, they will be able to step up and take over those roles.”
Tight-knit family
Fourth-year Flying Saluki Grant Gillespie, a senior in aviation technologies and aviation flight from Fort Worth, Texas, finished ninth overall at nationals in May. Gillespie is looking forward to hosting a regional for the first time while also spending time helping to train new team members.
“Honestly, it feels better," Gillespie said. “All of my previous competitions we’ve had to travel, which is fun, but I’ve never been able to experience this here at SIU at home."
Gillespie said there were several factors in deciding to come to SIU — including his attraction to the aviation program, affordability, a warmer climate and being closer to relatives in Nashville, Tennessee.
“Being part of a group that is really tight-knit, especially my first year, and having the support structure there, was really useful,” Gillespie said. “The opportunity to do something and fly more than I typically would in the flight program is great. It gives me more experience and a way to excel.”
Continues to enjoy coaching
Lincoln has been with the Flying Salukis either as an assistant coach or head coach for 16 years and continues to enjoy the process.
“It’s mostly just being able to work with students who are looking to better themselves more than the average student. It’s working with those who are looking to be able to compete – something that many of them lost after high school,” he said. “Being able to coach them and give them that release in college is kind of a cool thing.”