Is ATP considered a vocational school?

Airline Pilot Questions & Answers
1

I’m 54.6 years old and have 30 years on the job as a parole officer. I’m about to retire and want to fly commercially. If I use my 401k money to go to school, I can avoid the 10% penalty if ATP is considered to be a vocational school.
Any input would be appreciated.

2

I think to qualify as a “vocational school” you have to be able to receive federal student aid which you cannot at ATP. That being said, I’m not an admissions expert nor an IRS expert.

I recommend you direct your question to ATP admissions.
https://atpflightschool.com/airline-career-pilot-program/enrollment.html

3

Mario,

No, ATP is not considered a vocational school in this sense of the term.

I would however encourage you to look at the FAQ section as there is a detailed post on age in the airlines. Short version is that you do not have a lot of time left to fly and that should be a consideration when spending your retirement money.

Chris