Auburn University aviation receives Federal Aviation Administration flight time exemption

Auburn University’s aviation programs became the sixth in the nation to receive a Federal Aviation Administration exemption, creating a lower required flight time requirement for aviation graduates.

Aviation students in the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business are now eligible to earn an Airline Transport Pilot certification with as few as 1,000 flying hours instead of the typically required 1,500 hours.

Dale Watson, director of flight education at Auburn, said this is an opportunity for graduates of either the aviation management program or the professional flight management program to be hired sooner than they would without the exemption.

Watson said as of August, ATP certified pilots are required to have 1,500 flight hours, as mandated by a law passed with the intention of creating pilots with greater experience.

“As a result of the Colgan Air crash in 2009, Congress passed a law changing the hiring minimum requirements for passenger carrying airlines,” Watson said. “They passed that law, which took effect this past August.”

Watson said the university endeavored to prove that it is the quality of a flight student’s education that makes a good pilot more than the quantity of his educational experience.

The FAA’s new exemptions to the mandated flight hours are evidence that quality is as important as quantity, according to Watson. He said being an internationally-recognized flight program earned Auburn the right to give their students this exemption.

“We were only the sixth college in the nation to be given this authority,” Watson said. “What they are doing is authorizing the colleges to certify certain graduates for that reduced hours credit. We are now authorized to do that.”

Watson said they also have a period in which they can reach back to prior graduates to offer this certification. He said this period is not unlimited, but they’ve already been contacted by qualifying graduates interested in participating.

Watson said being one of the first schools to receive this exemption is an honor for the university’s aviation programs.

“The fact that there were only five before us I think speaks to the quality of our programs,” Watson said. “We think it’s another high-level testament to the quality of our aviation programs here at Auburn.”

Auburn is currently attempting to re-certify for its accreditation with the Aviation Accreditation Board International. This accreditation is necessary for several agreements the university holds, including a recently-signed agreement with JetBlue Airways.

“Our students can be hired through (the JetBlue) program for even less flight hours,” Watson said. “They can be hired the earliest through that program. That’s what makes accreditation so critical, because they can be hired the most quickly through that.”

Watson said they also have an agreement with an international airline that chooses to send its pilots to Auburn for their flight education.

“Our reputation is certainly very strong in the industry,” Watson said.

Original Article:   http://www.oanow.com