Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport's 11th annual Aviation & Transportation Career Expo attracted more than 3,000 students interested in learning about potential careers in the aviation and transportation fields. Hosted by DFW Airport, American Airlines, the Federal Aviation Administration and Tarrant County College, the Aviation and Transportation Career Expo is one of the largest annual educational events in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. More than a dozen independent school districts will participate in the half-day program, including the Dallas ISD and the Fort Worth ISD, along with numerous area schools. "The Expo is designed to give students an introduction to career options in the transportation and aviation fields," said Sean Donohue, CEO at DFW Airport. "Hopefully through the Expo we can help spark an interest in science, math and technical fields, like aviation and transportation, and even more than that show students that what they learn in school has practical and exciting applications. The event features a lot of hands-on exhibits that are fun and interesting for students of all ages, and it allows DFW and its partners to help create a new generation of aviation and transportation professionals." The Expo featured exhibits from 30 vendors across the spectrum of aviation and transportation, including more than 25 static aircraft and transportation displays. Among the rare planes on display were World War II-era fighter planes including as a North American P-51 Mustang, a Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, and a Mitsubishi Zero, along with a 1950s-era Cessna L19 Bird Dog and a Douglas DC-3 airplane. Students also spent time in a flight simulator, learned about the mechanics and science of flight and toured a wide array of information booths from more than 25 exhibitors such as the Civil Air Patrol, the Girl Scouts of Texas Oklahoma Plains, the U.S. Aviation Academy, the University of Texas at Arlington and many more. Students were encouraged to "travel" to each exhibitor and learn about different careers using the official "Let Your Dreams Take Flight!" Expo passport to mark the stops along their Expo journey. The Expo is open to elementary, junior high and high school students from more than 70 school districts in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. The Expo is a major element of DFW Airport's efforts toward educational outreach in the Dallas/Fort Worth community. "DFW Airport and our Expo partners are committed to inspiring and educating our community youth about the opportunities they have, and we love to see the wonder on their faces as they visit us," said Linda Valdez Thompson, executive vice president for administration and diversity at DFW. "This event helps to inspire the next generation of professionals in our field, and that's important to us to help build toward our workforce of the future."