University grows its aviation program
Charleston Southern acquires flight school
Charleston Southern University, a Christian college in South Carolina, announced it has recently acquired a local flight school, Chucktown Flight Training (which operates under the name Carolina Sky Flight Training), for the university’s fast-growing aeronautics program.
CSU’s aeronautics program was established in 2021, when the university partnered with Carolina Sky to offer a professional pilot degree, at the time the only four-year collegiate pilot training program in South Carolina. It has since grown from 19 to more than 150 students, with 33-percent year-over-year enrollment growth in the tracks of professional pilot, aerospace management, and aviation maintenance management.
The flight school is located at Summerville Airport and its fleet currently includes Diamond DA40s equipped with Garmin G1000 avionics and Diamond DA20s with steam gauges.
Besides the acquisition of the flight school, CSU’s commitment to aviation is reflected in its multimillion-dollar investment in the aeronautics program, including the construction of a science and engineering building to house faculty and staff, and a new flight simulation lab.
Veterans enrolled at CSU will also benefit from the acquisition of the flight school. They will be able to apply to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for benefits to support private pilot flight training. In addition, owning the flight school “makes the professional pilot program eligible to be considered for approval to enroll international students through the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.”
CSU is also working with Congress for equipment funding to boost the degree program experience. Formal partnerships are being discussed.
“In the future, expect to see program additions and expansions as CSU Aeronautics leads the way in collegiate flight training in South Carolina,” Richardson said.
