Mason High School freshman Mullika Pandit is the youngest and first female recipient to win a prestigious aviation scholarship.

The National Aviation Heritage Alliance presented its fifth annual Mitch Cary-Don Gum Memorial Aviation Scholarship, which provides $1,500 worth of flying lessons, to Pandit on Tuesday, Feb. 14.

NAHA created the scholarship to honor the lives of Mitch Cary and Don Gum, two local pilots and aviation heritage volunteers who lost their lives in 2011. The National Aviation Heritage Alliance (NAHA) is a non-profit chartered by Congress in 2004 to manage one of 49 National Heritage Areas in a program administrated by the National Park Service, and the only one dedicated to aviation heritage.

As part of her continued interest in aviation, Pandit also successfully completed Air Camp’s rigorous graduation requirements of hands-on learning curriculum and activities this past summer. Her unique skills were recognized at the culmination of the event when she was one of only four out of 44 students to receive the Spirit of Wright Award.  This acknowledgement is a celebration of students who best signify the values of leadership, scholarship and citizenship. Air Camp introduces middle school students to the wonders of flight and the science, technology, and engineering and mathematics (STEM) of aviation and aeronautics.

Visit www.aviationheritagearea.org and www.AirCampUSA.com for more information.