United admits 100 students to its flight school in 2021

CHICAGO - United Airlines started to accept applications for its "Aviate" flight school program after a Covid-19 delay this week. The airline embarks on an ambitious plan to train 5,000 new pilots for its cockpits by the year 2030 and will enroll the first 100 students in 2021.

United restarts its ab initio pilot training program. Though the crisis left thousands of pilots without jobs, the airlines braces for a looming retirement wave through the 2020s that may trigger a new pilot shortage in the US.

"Over the next decade, United will train 5,000 pilots who will be guaranteed a job with United, after they complete the requirements of the Aviate program - and our plan is for half of them to be women and people of color," said United CEO Scott Kirby.

To break down the financial barriers that limited access to the airline pilot career path for generations of women and people of color, United has committed to fund $1.2 million in scholarships. The airline's credit card partner, JPMorgan Chase has also committed $1.2 million to support women and people of color who are accepted to United Aviate Academy.

United's Aviate pilot development program provides those who aspire to a career as a United captain with the most direct route to achieving that goal. Aviate is built to accommodate pilots of all experience levels – from those with zero hours to professional pilots already flying for a regional partner.

The United Aviate Academy's first class of 20 pilots will begin their studies in the third quarter of 2021, with the class graduating in the first half of 2022.