Park City High School students could soon build an airplane on campus

Trip Marshall, aviation instructor at Park City High School, demonstrates the school's flight simulator, which helps students gain hands-on experience with real-world flight maneuvers before entering flight school. The program, supported by the Park City Education Foundation and community funding, prepares students for careers in aviation. Photo: Rebecca Brenner

PARK CITY, Utah — Park City School District is moving forward with an aviation maintenance program at Park City High School, expanding a career and technical education pathway that already includes private pilot ground school, flight simulation, and drone certification.

CTE Director Tracy Fike and aviation instructor Trip Marshall presented the curriculum recommendation at Tuesday’s Board of Education meeting.

District staff said they plan to adopt Tango Flight’s curriculum, a nonprofit that combines classroom instruction with hands-on aircraft assembly in high schools. The program would give students foundational coursework aligned with the general portion of aviation maintenance training while allowing them to work on an actual airplane build.

The proposal builds on an aviation program TownLift reported on in March 2025. In that story, Marshall said the school was exploring a partnership with Tango Flight and the possibility of having students assemble an airplane on campus.

That expansion now appears to be taking shape.

At Tuesday’s meeting, staff said the maintenance course is intended to reach a broader range of students than pilot training alone, including those interested in aircraft mechanics, shop work, and aerospace engineering. The curriculum aligns with state standards and fits the district’s college- and career-readiness goals by exposing students to a high-demand, high-wage field, staff said.

The program is expected to launch in the second semester, giving the district time to prepare space and materials. Student interest is already strong enough to run the class at capacity, according to staff.

The district is funding the program through what was described as an APEX grant—the state program formerly known as the Catalyst Center Grant, established by H.B. 447 in the 2025 legislative session. The funding would cover both the curriculum and a structure to house the aircraft-building work. Staff outlined costs, including tools, kit deliveries, professional development, and an annual curriculum subscription.

Marshall previously told TownLift the aviation industry’s workforce needs extend beyond pilots. “The aviation industry isn’t just short on pilots — it also needs mechanics and air traffic controllers,” he said in March 2025. “We’re looking at starting a maintenance training program and even exploring the possibility of building an airplane in-house.”

Staff said Tuesday the Tango Flight model would allow students to do just that, working through a multipart curriculum while helping assemble an aircraft over roughly two years. The program could also strengthen connections to postsecondary training, including discussions about possible future credit with Utah State University.

The aviation pathway has grown in part through community support and funding from the Park City Education Foundation. TownLift reported in March 2025 that donor support helped launch the school’s drone courses and later funded professional-grade flight simulators, allowing students to build industry skills during the school day at no cost.

If approved and implemented as outlined on Tuesday, the maintenance course would mark the next step in that buildout — bringing students from simulators and drone labs to the hangar-style work of assembling an airplane on campus.