January 26, (THEWILL) – United Airlines, the only major US airline to own a flight school, is celebrating the graduation of its Aviate Academy’s inaugural class of pilots.
The celebration, THEWILL gathered, is an important step towards training the next generation of talented, qualified, and motivated aviators.
The inaugural graduating class includes 51 students – with nearly 80% being women or people of colour – marking the next step towards the airline’s goal to train about 5,000 new pilots at the school by 2030, with the added goal of at least half women or people of colour.
According to the carrier, the recruitment and hiring of pilots is a priority at United and the academy is an example of the long-term investments in infrastructure, training, and aircraft the airline has made in the past few years.
Just last month, United is said to have purchased more wide-body aircraft than any US airline in history and announced it’s now the largest carrier across both the Pacific and Atlantic.
To support that growth, United also hired about 2,400 pilots in 2022 and plans to hire another 2,500 this year. United intends to add at least 10,000 pilots by the end of this decade.
United CEO, Scott Kirby and United COO, Toby Enqvist, honoured the first class of graduates at a ceremony held recently at the Phoenix Goodyear Airport.
Commenting, Toby said, “United is leading the industry in the training, recruitment and hiring of the next generation of talented commercial pilots and the progress we’ve made at United Aviate Academy after just one year is another example of an airline where good leads the way.
“I’m so proud of this first class of graduates, they’ve taken an important first step in their career and they reflect our commitment to hiring people, who exceed the highest professional and safety standards. I look forward to eventually welcoming them to our United team and I can’t wait to see them flying our new United Next planes in the years to come,” he added.
United Aviate Academy graduates can continue to build flight time and leadership experience while continuing within the United Aviate pilot career development program’s ecosystem.
The airline stated further that some graduates will work as Certified Flight Instructors at the academy to continue accruing the 1,500 required flying hours, a common industry practice for aspiring pilots, while others will build experience at participating flight schools or universities, including Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Purdue University and Hampton University.
United currently has more than 14,000 pilots, and Captains of United’s Boeing 787s and 777s can earn more than $350,000 per year plus a rich package of benefits. In addition, United pilots receive one of the highest 401(k) matches in the nation, 16% of base pay.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 5.6% of pilots are women and 6% are people of colour. And training to achieve a commercial pilot’s license in the US can cost at least $100,000, with supplementary costs adding to the financial burden.
To help address financial barriers to entry, United and JPMorgan Chase & Co. established a scholarship fund in 2020 and are working with leading industry partners to award more than $5 million in scholarships for prospective academy students.
In addition, Boeing has committed funding to expand the program this year. United also directly works with the following organizations to educate prospects about the benefits of becoming a pilot and to find candidates for scholarship opportunities.
About the Author
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
