While NTSB and FAA statistics can boast that the airline industry’s safety record is the safest period in history, the FAA wants to make sure that the trend continues.
Record orders of new airliners from both Boeing and Airbus as well as the threat of massive airline pilot retirements have caught the media’s focus over the past several years. The airlines and the FAA have been both looking at the problem and seeking answers from the training industry.
While current law requires a pilot to hold a First Class FAA Medical and an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate, the 1,500 flight hours and the minimum of 23 years of age are outside of the immediate reach of many young pilots. Congress has authorized the FAA to create a special category of flight training experience referred to as the Restricted Airline Transport Pilot (R-ATP).
Rigorous university learning
Enter the role of the hundreds of university aviation training programs providing highly talented young men and women as graduates of aeronautical training in the form of two- and four-year aviation degrees that meet the FAA requirement for the R-ATP. While not the only source for new pilots, the FAA has recognized and authorized certain two- and four-year aviation programs that meet very specific training and safety standards as a viable source of R-ATP airline pilot candidates, and the airlines have responded with specific cadet programs to shepherd these young pilots into the cockpit.
According to the University Aviation Association (UAA) which serves as an industry hub for these university training programs, there are approximately 82 four-year programs and 16 two-year programs that offer specific degree programs to prepare professional pilots for the high demands of an airline crewed cockpit. These programs typically have an aircraft fleet consisting of highly technical aircraft, advanced simulation capabilities, and a robust safety program that prepares graduates for the stringent world of airline aviation. Some even have sought and received industry accreditation from a stringent self and peer evaluation from the Aviation Accreditation Board International (AABI). These programs have stringent training and safety protocol processes defined and are held to a high-quality standard.
The university programs have fared well in this environment, and many are boasting nearly 100% placement of their graduates in a professional pilot career. Many industry analysts feel that the airline industry is overdue for another pilot hiring correction, but with pilot retirements looming, the airlines cannot afford to loiter to keep their pipelines filled with viable candidates. Even though some conditional job offers to graduates involve class dates of 4-6 months out, the graduates don’t seem to mind. Neither do the parents as even more freshmen aviation applications continue to pour into university admission offices across the country. The university programs that are answering the call for pilots of the future are standing ready to continue their competitive development of tomorrow’s pilots.
