Students from Discover Summer were flying high after spending the day touring the Detroit Metro Airport with representatives from Delta Airlines.

“Many of our students have never been on a plane before, so the tour was a great way to introduce them to air travel,” said Anjie Dorsey, Special Tree Recreational Therapist.  The airport tour is just one of many educational community outings organized by Special Tree’s Recreational Therapists for the Discover Summer program.

The tour began with presentations from TSA agents, a pilot, the K-9 unit, flight attendants, ticket counter agents, porters, and the Complaint Resolution Official (CRO) Department, who organized the tour.  “The kids asked a lot of great questions and demonstrated perfect behavior,” added Dorsey.

The next stop was security where students discovered why travelers need to get to the airport early!  The students waited in line, removed shoes, belts, etc. as any traveler would and learned about how the Delta team assists individuals with special needs throughout their travel experience.

Delta Airlines saved the best for last as the tour wrapped up on board a 747 where kids toured the cockpit and got to sit in first class. “The really cool thing is, the plane we toured was actually heading to Frankfurt Germany,” said Dorsey.  “The Delta team was exceptionally prepared, organized, and kind to our group.”

The tour got rave reviews from students, especially client Kaylynn who said it was one of the best community outings so far this summer.  “It was fun, I really liked it,” she said. Kaylynn’s tour highlights were meeting dogs from the K-9 unit and learning about a special wheelchair that fits in the aisle of the plane.

“It was such a great experience for the kids,” said Dorsey.  “Even though we didn't actually fly anywhere, you would have thought different by the exclamations from the kids when describing their experience!”