Embry-Riddle Flight Students Gain Hiring Advantage with New SkyWest Airlines Pilot Cadet Program
(PRWEB) September 30, 2013 -- Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and SkyWest Airlines are partnering on a new program that will give Embry-Riddle students a substantial boost toward becoming a SkyWest first officer.
Under the agreement, Aeronautical Science (professional pilot) students who have achieved a Certified Flight Instructor rating are eligible to apply for the SkyWest Pilot Cadet Program through the Career Services offices at Embry-Riddle’s residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz.
After undergoing an initial interview and a day of orientation at the airline’s training facility in Salt Lake City, students judged acceptable will receive a conditional offer of employment.
Students enrolled in the Pilot Cadet Program must then maintain a minimum grade point average, complete Embry-Riddle’s advanced jet training courses and attain the FAA ratings of Commercial Pilot/Instrument and Multi-Engine as well as Certified Flight Instructor/Instrument. Each cadet will be individually mentored by SkyWest pilots, many of them Embry-Riddle alumni, and may have the opportunity to participate in SkyWest recruiting events and outreach programs.
Unlike an internship, the Pilot Cadet Program allows students to remain at their Embry-Riddle campus to complete their degree program and flight training, and they stay enrolled in the Cadet Program for as long as it takes them to meet SkyWest’s Airline Transport Pilot standards.
“Given Embry-Riddle’s comprehensive flight education curriculum and the quality of its students and flight instructors, we’re pleased to partner with them in providing an enhanced career path for the next generation of exceptional pilots,” said Klen Brooks, SkyWest’s vice president of Flight Operations.
The chair of the Flight Department at Embry-Riddle’s Daytona Beach Campus, Ken Byrnes, considers the new program ideal for both SkyWest and students.
“It gives students real-world skills and the reassurance of a career offer while also supplying a pipeline of highly qualified professionals for the airline,” he said.
Jerry Kidrick, Flight chair at the Prescott Campus, added, “SkyWest is well respected for its outstanding executive leadership, skilled workforce and solid operational performance, so we know our students will have valuable experiences that will greatly enrich their education and their careers.”
Embry-Riddle has similar agreements with other airlines — American Eagle/American, Cape Air/JetBlue and ExpressJet/Delta — in which its students start flying for smaller airlines associated with large carriers.
Representatives from SkyWest and other regional airlines will discuss their pilot-hiring programs with Prescott Campus students Wednesday, Oct. 2, at 8 p.m. in the auditorium of the Davis Learning Center. For more information, contact Merrie Heath at (928) 777-3901 or merrie(dot)heath(at)erau(dot)edu.
At the Daytona Beach Campus, SkyWest personnel will meet with students Tuesday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m. in the auditorium of the Willie Miller Instructional Center. For more information, contact Lauren Burmester at (386) 226-7018 or lauren(dot)hessler(at)erau(dot)edu.
About SkyWest Airlines
Headquartered in St. George, Utah, SkyWest Airlines operates connecting flights for some of the world’s largest carriers, including Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and US Airways. It offers more than 1,800 flights each day to 171 destinations in North America with a fleet of 327 aircraft composed of Embraer 120 turboprops and three Bombardier models: CRJ200, CRJ700 and CRJ900. In 2012 the airline transported 26.2 million passengers. For more information, visit http://www.skywest.com and follow @SkyWestAirlines on Twitter.
About Embry-Riddle
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, is a nonprofit, independent institution offering more than 40 baccalaureate, master’s and Ph.D. degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business and Engineering. Embry-Riddle educates students at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., and through the Worldwide Campus with more than 150 locations in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The university is a major research center, seeking solutions to real-world problems in partnership with the aerospace industry, other universities and government agencies.
Mary Van Buren, Asst. Director, Univ. Internal Communications, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, 386-226-6525, [email protected]
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