Auburn’s professional flight management and aviation management programs have faced serious trouble over the last decade. The programs were on the verge of closing just two years ago.
More than 4,000 aviation program alumni rallied together at the federal, state and local levels to lobby for funding, according to Jason Mohrman, an Auburn alumnus and United Airlines captain.
The program came close to losing its accreditation in 2013 due to a lack of professors. Mohrman and other alumni got in motion to change that and were successful.
On Thursday, Oct. 1 Captain Brad Sheehan, Auburn alumnus and senior vice president of operations for ExpressJet Airlines, visited aviation students.
Sheehan’s visit came at a time of growth for the aviation programs. After a serious overhaul, a new flight education center at Auburn University Regional Airport is in the works, and the program is on an up spin.
Sheehan said the program is important to him not only because he is an alumnus, but because of the quality of the program, the success of its students and its rich tradition.
“I find Auburn graduates to be the most passionate and, in my opinion, the most capable,” Sheehan said. “We back that capability up with results. It’s culture and it’s quality. It’s a reputable university with a very capable program.”
ExpressJet partners with Auburn University for the Airline Pilot Pathway Program (AP3), which connects Auburn aviation students with ExpressJet as a possible future employer. ExpressJet and Auburn also partner for a gateway program with JetBlue.
Four-year aviation programs are extremely rare, and Auburn is home to Alabama’s only four-year aviation degree. The uniqueness of the program attracts students.
“I chose Auburn because of the aviation program,” said Hanna Fowler, junior in aviation management. “It’s close to home, but it’s still real college. You still get the football games and the big SEC school feel.”
Most other aviation schools focus more centrally on flight. Auburn’s program is unique in that it provides training in the business sector of aviation.
“I chose aviation, because I love to fly," Fowler said. "I think everyone wants a career that they love."
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