Bellbrook High School junior Laney Bottemiller is eager to learn to fly, even though she’s already had her hands on the controls.
The JROTC Flight Commander was accepted into Flight Academy this summer while Emily DeArmond was selected as an alternate.
The Flight Academy is a scholarship funded by the United States Air Force to send AFJROTC cadets to attend private pilot training at partner universities and colleges during the summer of 2025 for an eight-week program. The process was extremely competitive and the selections were identified through a competitive boarding process.
“To even have this opportunity is great,” Bottemiller said. “In the past, Lt. Colonel Christine Gangaware gave some of us the opportunity to go to Greene County Airport and I got to fly there and we learned about the instruments and flight planning. I learned a lot and that was just one day. This is every day for a summer, so I am going to learn so much.”
Cadets will be engaged in an accelerated flight training program that operates up to 6-7 days a week, weekends and holidays included.
Ethan Bui, class of 2023, went through the program during the summer of 2022.
Bottemiller said the experience is even exciting for her family as several aunts, uncles and grandparents have served in the Air Force.
“My Great Uncle is really excited about it for me,” she said. “But I have a lot of family members who have been talking to me about it.”
To earn her way in, Bottemiller had to fill out a lengthy application which included an essay, a letter of recommendation as well as math tests, where she scored above the national average.
“I had so many people help me and proofread the essay for me,” Bottemiller said. “It was hard because the prompt was vague. It was basically ‘why do you deserve (getting into the program).’ I think that was the most stressful part, along with the Aviation Qualification Test.”
Bottemiller said she is a little scared to miss some of the things she’d do in a “normal” summer, but the junior shouldn’t be mistaken for a normal teenager.
She is involved in National Honor Society and plans to apply to be an officer next year. She is the Flight Commander for the JROTC and plans to apply to be one of the Top 3 next year.
She is a part of Key Club, is in Supportive Peers, does Peer Tutoring and takes College Credit Plus classes.
“We could not be more proud of Laney and her selection for this scholarship,” Gangaware said. “Since her freshman year, she has been a very active cadet and leader in our program and it’s great to see her recognized and rewarded for all her hard work.”
For Bottemiller, learning to fly will just be one more thing that sets her apart.