Community Corner

Eye on the Sky: Local Teen Takes First Solo Flight

Deemed ready fly solo, 16-year-old takes first solo flight at Montgomery County Airpark.

For Youssef Selim, turning 16 meant embarking on a different sort of rite-of-passage—getting a license to fly.

Selim, a junior at Urbana High School took his first solo flight at Montgomery County Airpark on in Gaithersburg on Sept. 30. He earned his student pilot certificate and was deemed competent to fly by his flight instructor Sharif Hidayat. 

He’ been flying since he was 12 and we’re told he hopes to get his commercial license when he turns 18. 

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Hwaida Hassanein, his mother, sent Patch photos from his big day.


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