Does the Airlines and ATP Pay for your training as in Tuition Reimbursement? I am having a dilemma

Airline Pilot Questions & Answers
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Hello everybody my name is Bryant and i am a recent graduate of Miami Dade College. I came on here because i am curious on where i need to go since i graduated out of my Bachelor’s Degree of Supervision and Management.

I have several options i been thinking one is to go for Embry-Riddle which is something i have planned for Aeronautics, Another is Purdue for Aviation and Aerospace Management.

But i saw that ATP offers Flight Operations Officer training and MDC also offers Aircraft Dispatcher as well, which is making me rethink these options as well.

I am currently 33 as well and i need help and guidance in how i am going to do this? Because i am having a dilemma on how to do this?

I saw that ATP and the Airlines have Tuition Reimbursement Training which would work favors for me i get to do my Childhood dream. Also i saw that Lufthansa has their Flight Academy as well and its making me think if i should continue my flight training.

I was flying with a flight school before but i couldn’t continue at the time because i was continuing college and working part time, so i had to put that on hold, currently i finished my Bachelor’s Degree still waiting for it to arrive in the mail.

My question for all of you i don’t know if this is the right forum for this? I am new here, is that If ATP or the Airlines offer Flight training tuition Reimbursement, meaning they pay for my training for the most part including books, classroom and such as long as i fly with them and be able to go for an airline for example Lufthansa, American and so forth? I don’t mind going for an academy and driving there to do my training i feel i am more then ready for it, i want to go for my American Dream and if its possible for me to do so then i can do it.

Problem is that i see the program its super expensive but i am trying to see how i can get into the Industry as a whole such as Flight Dispatcher and among other means.

I am not letting some stupid virus put me down and defeat me of who i am, i am an Aviator thru and thru and i want to get my wings back and earn them. Another problem is that i am not military at all so its harder for me to be able to do so and i lost my shot of becoming a pilot there because of the restriction.

Please any advice is helpful i want to fly again but i want to do it in a way that it won’t be impossible for me to do so. I am sorry for the long post its just i want to enter the Aerospace/ Aviation industry so badly, i want to be surrounded by Airplanes and be with my Passion and love of these wonderful Machines (Birds).

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Bryant,

A few things. If you’ve already got your degree there’s really no point getting another through an aviation university. While flight training will never be cheap, most university programs are more so.

Next do you want to be a pilot or a dispatcher? They are 2 very different career paths and jobs. If however your finances are a primary concern, dispatch training is considerably less expensive but you’ll also never see the salary pilots do.

Finally while many of the Regionals offer Tuition Reimbursement (which is a great deal), that’s only available after you complete your training and will help you repay your debt as you’re building time before you can actually fly for that airline. None of the Majors are offering anything of the kind because frankly they don’t need to.

I recommend you visit our FAQ section as we detail the route to becoming an airline pilot and many other common questions.

Adam

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Thank you and yes your right they are 2 very different pathways but its just something i am thinking of. But the response is really helpful.

I mentioned Embry-Riddle and Purdue is for the Masters Degrees just to clarify on that.

To clarify so the regionals offer Tuition Reimbursement after my training?? I thought it was before, and during the training? And the training is around 80,000 Dollars. I thought Lufthansa was helping with the Tuition Reimbursement???

Do anybody know of Lufthansa Flight Academy? I am curious to know because i need to find out what is my next step.

Is it possible even with the Flight Dispatcher that it can also help me with the Flight training i have heard they are somewhat alike just different but that one can transition to another if so choose to be. If its possible to do so?

I am sorry if i am asking so many questions its just i am curious about this, i am still evaluating on what i can do after my Bachelor’s? I need direction on where am i going to go?

Also in Aviation does a Bachelor’s Degree help with being a pilot and being in the Industry?

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Bryant,

And you want your Master’s degree for what? Airline’s don’t require Masters nor will it help you get hired, advance etc in either the pilot or dispatcher ranks and again the costs are considerably more than flight school.

No, Tuition Reimbursement in the US is only available AFTER you’ve been trained and it’s usually capped at approx $15k. That’s nothing to sneeze at but it’s not going to cover all your costs. As for Lufthansa I’ve never heard of them sponsoring or paying for anyone’s flight training. There were some European carriers recruiting pilots for their Ab Intio programs but in most cases you need to be an EU citizen, generally be under the age of 30 (as older pilots have a shorter career potential) and most importantly that was before the pandemic forced airlines around the globe to ground planes. Lufthansa pilots recently took a 45% paycut for the next 2 yrs to avoid furloughs. Trust me they won’t be posting for any pilot’s training anytime soon.

While dispatchers have to learn the academics, rules and regs of aviation they don’t fly, don’t need to pass checkrides or build time. While being a dispatcher would help with the knowledge portion of training, at your age spending time training, getting hired and working as a dispatcher would actually be detrimental to your career. If you want to be a pilot be a pilot.

Major airlines want a Bachelor’s degree, the Regionals don’t require one.

Adam

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Bryant,

I believe the Lufthansa Flight Center you are talking about is the one in Goodyear, AZ. From my understanding Lufthansa hires their future pilots after numerous interviews, tests, backgorund checks and so on then sends the candidates to EASA ground school for all of their exams with lufthansa pilots and trainers before they go to Goodyear for training where the weather is more conducive to the accelerated training they want. The candidates get their certificates and then head back to Germany for their onboarding and other items.

I don’t know if Lufthansa pays for it or the candidate but I have heard European airlines tend to only hire their own citizens. Last I knew the CFIs at goodyear are apparently FAA CFIs that are hired by lufthansa for instruction positions only.

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Very helpful advices, so there is no other way around this? Or so it seems, i have always been a believer that there is more ways then just one way, as me and my mother always believe, “Where there is a Will, There is a Way.”

So you mean there is no way that i can get to fly for an affordable price, i know flight training is expensive, its just i am looking for ways on how to go for my Childhood dream now that i finished my Bachelor’s Degree my schedule has been cleared out since then i have thought of going for this but the prices has questioned me since i am not well established yet.

So the airlines will pay for your training if you work with them and after you invest in your training, Paid for thats what i am getting from this?

The dispatcher idea is for me to be able to get into the Door because i don’t want to work in Retail for the rest of my life and be able to fly when i can get the chance and if not by the airlines at least to get another license on the side to be able to continue flying leisurely like a private pilot license and commercial, i hope i can fly a P-51 Mustang or a DC-3 one day. I still want to fly but privately and maybe commercially.

Anyways i am still evaluating my options in what i have left because i do have a loan i have to pay back eventually, and i finished my Bachelor’s Degree at Miami Dade College, and currently i am waiting for my degree to come in the mail.

So does this means that my childhood dream cannot happen??? I am a sad eagle. I thought i can make it possible because i am not financially well. And i am not military which hurts me even more and my heart more. I want to enter this industry so badly but while i have some ideas its still difficult for me as a person passionate about Airplanes, traveling, flying, and so forth, i am not where i want to be yet. Thats the Dilemma i am having, i want to go for my career but i don’t have ground works on how.

Thats why i came here because i need help, i need guidance, i want to be able to earn my wings, that if its possible to do so?

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Bryant,

The financial aspect can be the biggest hurdle for many. The vast majority of aspiring pilots are not wealthy and most finance the training. Many also have additional loans they’re paying from college. Your situation is not unique. As you say where there’s a will there’s a way and if it’s truly your dream you’ll figure it out.

Adam

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Bryant,

Many of the regional airlines offer tuition reimbursement, but as Adam said, that is after flight training and covers a portion of your loan payments, not all. The vast majority of pilots that I know took out loans to pay for flight school, myself included.

Being a dispatcher will do absolutely nothing to advance your career as a pilot. IT can be a great career unto itself, but it isn’t being a pilot.

If this is something you really want, you will need to find a way to finance it.

Chris