Choose Your Own Adventure at Girls in Aviation Day
By Connect-Bridgeport Staff on October 01, 2026
The fifth annual North Central West Virginia Girls in Aviation Day lands in Bridgeport this Saturday, Oct. 3.
Scheduled from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., the free event offers three hours of fun, designed to spark an interest in the aviation industry.
With activities to explore on both levels of the former North Central West Virginia Airport terminal (2000 Aviation Way, Bridgeport, WV 26330) and outside on the apron, it will be a day to choose your own adventure.
This year’s lineup is packed with hands-on opportunities, including a wide array of aircraft and vehicles on display. Attendees can get up close and personal with the machines and talk with the people who operate them.
Perhaps most exciting will be the presence of a UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter, which will fly in with an all female crew, courtesy of the West Virginia Army National Guard, as well as displays of Cessna aircraft from the Civil Air Patrol and Fairmont State University’s Aviation Center of Excellence. The airport’s vehicle fleet will also be on display, including its Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) vehicle, fuel truck, and more.
Participants can also learn the different parts of a CRJ aircraft with MHI RJ, then hear from the people responsible for keeping aircraft safe from the inside out – including Pratt & Whitney Engine Services and Pierpont Community & Technical College’s Aviation Maintenance Technology program.
One new program participating this year is SpaceTrek, a premier STEM program that builds a strong regional workforce pipeline by empowering high school girls to pursue degrees and leadership roles in high-tech careers in aerospace and engineering. They hosted a summer camp at West Virginia Wesleyan College this summer and will feature the satellite building activity from that camp at GIAD this weekend.
More than a dozen other activities and informational tables will be set up around the terminal to explore. There’s no set path to follow. Attendees can wind through the activities at their own pace, making for a truly educational and exciting day from start to finish.
Swag giveaways will also be available on a first-come, first-served basis from many of the event’s participants and sponsors.
While the event is geared toward middle and high school-age girls, it is open to all children up to the age of 18, all of whom must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
All participants, both children and adults, must pre-register to attend at https://tinyurl.com/s9e6seey.
Follow the event page on Facebook for updates: https://www.facebook.com/share/1ZtyLDigd5/
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