AOPA opens online applications for flight training scholarships

AOPA has opened the online application for eight $5,000 flight training scholarships that will be awarded at the AOPA Aviation Summit in Fort Worth, Texas, Oct. 10 through 12.

Student pilots working toward an initial sport, recreational, or private pilot certificate may apply online for the scholarships. AOPA began offering the scholarships in 2011 as part of its Flight Training Student Retention Initiative, designed to improve the flight training experience and help more student pilots succeed in earning a pilot certificate.

The deadline to apply is Aug. 26 at 11:59 Eastern Daylight Time. Applicants only need to fill out the form once to be considered for the eight scholarships. The recipients will be chosen based on merit, including previous accomplishments, ability to set goals, and a demonstrated commitment to flight training and general aviation.

Scholarship applicants must meet all criteria, including that they be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident; be at least 16 years of age; hold a current FAA student pilot certificate at the time of application; be a current and paid member of AOPA at both the time of application and when the scholarship is awarded; and not have completed the FAA practical test/checkride at the time of application.

The winners will be notified prior to AOPA Aviation Summit and do not need to be present to accept the award, but may attend the event as a guest of AOPA.

“Thanks to the AOPA Foundation, the flight training scholarship program keeps growing. I am excited that we will be able to award eight scholarships at Summit,” said Brittney Miculka, manager of flight training initiatives for AOPA’s Center to Advance the Pilot Community. “The scholarship recipients are always high-caliber pilots who give back to general aviation and serve as ambassadors for our community.”

The AOPA Foundation’s generous donors are the ones who make the scholarships possible, said foundation vice president Stephanie Kenyon. “As part of our Giving Back program, the scholarship awards are one of the ways that the foundation is working to benefit the entire general aviation community.”