Auburn expanding aviation program
Students entering Auburn University’s aviation program have a lot to cheer about: A new 23,000-square-foot Airport Aviation Education Facility was approved Feb. 3 by the university’s board of trustees, and the building should be ready in 2018.
The $8.7 million facility will occupy the south ramp at Auburn University Regional Airport and house classrooms, a flight simulator lab, and dispatch and briefing rooms.
To facilitate the expansion, its current aviation program will move from the College of Business to the University College. The change effectively gives aviation students time to dig deeper into aviation studies rather than enrolling in core courses required to complete a degree in business. The modification in course study “will greatly benefit our aviation students,” Hutto said, because it allows students to have an “expanded aviation education as a result of the increased number of core aviation courses they will take.”
In an email to AOPA he added, "The announcement of the new degrees and the new building will just strengthen and continue our long history of education industry leaders."
Auburn University has been actively involved in aviation education since 1941, and the regional airport is home to the nationally ranked War Eagle Flying Team. The college’s FAA-approved Part 141 pilot school and its Envoy, JetBlue, and ExpressJet pilot pipeline programs help students develop career paths to regional airlines and the aerospace industry.
The university also reaches out to youths interested in aviation by hosting two high school summer camps for aspiring aviators, June 25 through 30 and July 9 through 14.
David Tulis
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