An all-Black flight crew takes 160 Atlanta kids on a dream day inside the world of airplanes

Some of the passengers showed up ready to fly the plane themselves. A few of the youngest wore full pilot uniforms with shoulder stripes and neckties. One or two topped it off with a captain's hat.

A gate full of future pilots

About 160 students from around metro Atlanta packed a gate at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport early Tuesday for Delta's 26th annual DREAM Flight. The teens ranged in age from 13 to 18. They came from schools and youth groups across the region, including Rex Mill Middle, Elite Scholars, the Kindezi Schools, Morrow High School, an aviation academy run by Black aerospace professionals and the Atlanta chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen youth program.

The waiting area turned into a sea of matching crimson T-shirts. Young cadets in gray Air Force sweatshirts lined up next to real airline pilots for photos.

Flown by people who look like them

The flight itself carried a message. Every member of the crew was a Black aviation professional. The airline partnered with Black aerospace groups so the students could meet pilots, mechanics and engineers who share their background and can tell them exactly how they got there.

"Today is all about you," Kurt Ford told the kids before boarding. Ford runs flight training for the airline. He said he wanted them to see themselves in every grown-up they met along the way.

Drones, simulators and a jet factory

The group flew to Mobile, Alabama, where the students toured the Airbus assembly line and watched passenger jets come together piece by piece. They also took the controls of drones and a flight simulator before hearing from airline and Airbus leaders at a local community college.

Ford said the goal is to show the teens that the cockpit is only one door into the industry. Engineering, design and manufacturing jobs need people too. He also admitted he had never flown a drone himself, so the kids were not the only ones trying something new.

A pilot since age 7

For 12-year-old William Hobson the day was years in the making. He fell for airplanes during the pandemic when his family could not travel and he spent hours watching jets instead. He has wanted to be a pilot ever since.

"With Delta Air Lines, I feel like I can conquer a lot," he said.

Ford said the cabin gets a little loud on these trips because everyone is so excited. More than 4,000 young people have taken part since the program began. A few of them may be wearing those captain's hats for real one day.