Air Force reservist inspires next generation of pilots

Kenny Thomas, Air Force reservist

Major Kenny Thomas isn’t just following his own dreams of flying. He’s also introducing the dream to others by inspiring a new generation to take to the skies.

Thomas has loved airplanes since he was a kid.

“I used to get the books from the library that just had pictures of airplanes, the airplane encyclopedias,” he said.

The Air Force reservist was 28 when he first flew a plane, but he wished he had started flying sooner.

“I remember on one of my first flights, I flew up to the Atlanta Motor Speedway, and I remember seeing a bunch of kids out there, flying. And I was like, ‘Man, how come I didn’t know about something like this when I was their age?'” said Thomas. “And that was one of the things that sparked me to be like, ‘All right. I gotta find a way to be able to give kids who were me that same experience and exposure.'”

Now, Thomas leads the nonprofit Legacy Flight Academy.

“We want to make sure that people in all communities have the same access to being able to get jobs as pilots,” Thomas said.

Only 2% of pilots in the U.S. are Black. Thomas and his volunteers want to change that by getting kids in planes and teaching them history.

“The foundation of Legacy Flight Academy is the Tuskegee Airmen. We want to live the legacy, which is what we’re doing by having excellence, having integrity, by setting goals. We’re living the legacy,” he said. “And then growing the legacy is when we can go out and we find these students, and we help them get to where they can reach their goals and reach their dreams.

Shaniya Marshall is a pilot today thanks to Thomas. “Legacy Flight Academy gave me my first scholarship for $7,500, which allowed for me to finish my private pilot’s license.

“I never thought of it as more than a childhood dream,” she said.

For Thomas, the reward is seeing students thrive.

“When you’re flying with a student, and you’re trying to teach them something, and all of a sudden they get the ‘ah hah’ moment, it makes you feel like all the work you’re putting in with them, all the energy and all the time, is worth it.”