Vertical Flight Society announces 2021 scholarship recipients

Scholarships totaling US$100,000 are being awarded this year to 27 of the world’s most talented engineering students interested in vertical flight.

“Since 1977, our Vertical Flight Foundation Scholarships have helped inspire generations of students to pursue careers in vertical flight, with many now holding leadership positions in industry, academia and government, with more 600 scholarships awarded to date,” said VFS Executive Director Mike Hirschberg. “Through the incredible generosity of our members, we have been able to greatly expand the program in recent years. Over the past decade, we have now awarded 238 scholarships worth more than $750,000.”

Scholarships for Bachelor, Masters and Doctorate students

Each of the Bachelor scholarships includes a cash award of $3,500; the Masters students receive $3,500 each and Doctorate scholarship winners each receive $3,625. In addition, the top candidates have received special recognition. Damaris Rene Zachos, Pennsylvania State University, will receive a total of $5,000 for the Bell Scholarship, provided by a generous VFF endowment from the company and awarded to the top overall scoring VFF recipient. Paola Zanella, Georgia Institute of Technology, is receiving $6,000 as the winner of the Dr Jing Yen VFF Scholarship for Cost Awareness, given to the most qualified applicant who shows interest in improving the affordability of rotorcraft.