With a legacy of excellence in aviation education reaching back almost 70 years, LeTourneau University’s College of Aviation & Aeronautical Science trains pilots, dispatchers, aircraft mechanics, drone pilots, and more, to a standard near unmatched within higher education. Also unmatched: We’re the only comprehensive aviation training program in the state of Texas.
Exactly what do we mean by “comprehensive”? All training, labs, and classes are taught by LeTourneau University instructors and faculty, meaning no part of our program instruction is sub-contracted to third-party contractors. If you are passionate about aviation and want to turn your dreams into reality, you’re in the right place, and in exceptional hands.
LeTourneau Aviation is a national leader, who students and employers recognize as premier program of extraordinary value that’s situated within a comprehensive and distinctively Christian university — the Christian Polytechnic University, where educators engage learners to nurture Christian virtue, to develop competency and ingenuity in their professional fields, to integrate faith and work, and to serve the local and global community.
Our program began in 1956 as an “on-the-job” training program at our founder R.G. LeTourneau’s aviation business in Longview, Texas. Students could begin studies any Monday and learned by working alongside qualified aviation professionals. Over the past six decades, almost everything about our program has changed, but the personal integrity, professional excellence and ability to “get the job done” remain the hallmark of LETU aviation graduates.
With high, ongoing demand for pilots, maintenance technicians, and other aviation professionals, only our limited space keeps us from admitting more students and ensuring they receive a top-quality, hands-on, thoroughly Christian education.
LETU has a dedicated facility for its aviation program, the Paul & Betty Abbott Aviation Center, located at the Gregg County Regional Airport. The 55,000-square foot facility includes flight simulation labs, a full suite of aircraft mechanic technical labs, flight dispatch center, a fleet of university owned aircraft, and much more. And more to come, with designs in the works for a significant expansion, which will create the most complete, hands-on aviation training anywhere, propelling LeTourneau Aviation into the next phase of its growth and producing more graduates—better equipped than ever to become world-changing aviators.
We also do more than assure our graduates are industry ready. We assure they can reach for industry jobs faster than most aviation grads around the country. Thanks to an FAA R-ATP benefit, afforded by our integrated flight program, pilots who train at LETU have 500 flight hours removed from the 1,500-hour requirement that is standard for airline pilots. That amounts to somewhere between 1.5 to 3 years less time that LETU graduates spend gaining flight experience before becoming an airline pilot—one of the 1.3 million needed aviation professionals meeting critical industry demands by 2032.
David Tesser, Dean of the LETU College of Aviation, sums it up: “God has put LeTourneau Aviation in the right place at the right time. The industry is growing, and students are seeking us out. I can’t help but be excited when I think about a world-class facility full of world-class educators producing even more missional, world-changing aviators.”
The entire LeTourneau University community is committed to providing transformational educational opportunities, industry-ready preparation, uncommon student experiences, and Christ-centered character formation. The aviation and aeronautical science programs at LETU are part of a university-wide offering of 130+ degree programs and certifications across a wide range of academic disciplines and delivery models. More than 3,500 residential, online, and dual credit students from almost all 50 states and 35 countries call LeTourneau University ‘home.’ And from here, the options are endless. At LeTourneau University cultivating your calling will lead to limitless reach in an increasingly interconnected world.
To learn more, visit www.letu.edu
