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The doors at United Aviate Academy have officially opened

February 15, 2022


The ribbon has been cut! Yesterday, United Aviate Academy (UAA), United’s wholly-owned flight school, hosted its grand opening where UAA staff, United leaders, government officials and members of the media welcomed a historic inaugural class of future pilots. We are proud that of the 7,500 initial applicants to the academy, the first class of students is 80% women or people of color, outpacing United's goal to train about 5,000 new pilots at the school by 2030 with at least half being women or people of color.

United CEO Scott Kirby congratulated the new students and outlined United’s plan to help break down some of the barriers to entry through scholarship and financial aid solutions, targeted recruiting and strategic partnerships. He also announced United and JPMorgan Chase & Co. have renewed their partnership and recommitted to fund nearly $2.4 million in scholarships for future aviators.

“Our pilots are the best in the industry and have set a high standard of excellence,” said Kirby, who himself trained to be a pilot at the United States Air Force Academy. “Recruiting and training even more people who have that same level of talent, motivation and skill is the right thing to do and will make us an even better airline. I couldn’t be prouder of this first group of students and look forward to meeting the thousands of talented people who will pass through these doors in the years to come.” Read more about United’s commitment to training the next generation of pilots in Kirby’s new articleThe truth about the pilot shortage.

Students at the academy will undergo a rigorous, year-long training program, positioning them for a career that reflects United’s high standard of professionalism and deep commitment to delivering a safe, caring, dependable and efficient travel experience. After completing their training at the academy, students can build flight and leadership experience while working within the Aviate pilot development ecosystem at partner universities, professional flight training organizations and United Express carriers, all on their way to becoming United pilots.

Get the latest academy updates by following the recently launched Instagram account @unitedaviateacademy. You’ll get a glimpse into life at the academy, learn about the intensive curriculum and get to know the UAA community. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for students at United Aviate Academy!

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Any questions?

Full details regarding Aviate eligibility and transition requirements can be found in the Aviate Program Guide (APG). For questions not covered in the APG, please provide your information and question in the space provided, and we’ll get back to you soon.

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