For James Birdsong, interim director of Auburn University's aviation program, it’s a passion for teaching, paired with a passion for Auburn students and faculty, that makes him love his job.
"I love working with the people on our team. We have phenomenal staff and faculty in the aviation program," Birdsong said.
Birdsong, who served in the Air Force for 20 years, oversees the academic majors within the program as well as the flight operations and the maintenance that support professional flight.
One aspect of Birdsong’s job is to keep the program up to date with developments in the aviation world. It’s a requirement for faculty to stay up to speed with all the changes that occur daily within the industry.
"We're plugged into industry through an aviation advisory board, and we have very active alums,” Birdsong said. “We have alums that are working out there in the industry, and they keep us updated with changes going on.”
The aviation program has partnerships and career pathway programs, both of which help Birdsong, aviation faculty and students stay connected to the aviation industry.
"We are also partnered with major employers on the airlines side, all the major airlines in the United States," Birdsong said.
Auburn’s aviation program has partnerships with Delta, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, JetBlue and American Airlines.
"[Professional flight students] are active and doing internships at a lot of those companies, as well as a wide range of companies to also include business aviation,” Birdsong said.
The majority of Auburn’s aviation students tend to work toward the professional flight track; however, about one-third of the program’s 1,000 students join the aviation management track.
Aviation faculty are currently working toward adding an aviation management master’s degree.
All university flight programs are directed by the Federal Aviation Administration regarding the training of pilots. What sets Auburn apart from other universities, according to Birdsong, is “the Auburn experience.”
A capstone class is offered for seniors, which allows flight students to progress from flying small airplanes to flying an Airbus A320 simulator — working as a crew, just like professionals in the airline industry.
"That is something very unique to Auburn,” Birdsong said.
Some institutions have contacted Auburn about how to obtain the simulator, build it and use it.
"The students get to operate it and they love it. It prepares them really well for the airlines,” Birdsong said.
Auburn’s aviation program has many projects in the works, including an expansion of their fleet.
"We're increasing our fleet size by having 66 airplanes next fall," Birdsong said.
Auburn is currently partnering with Southern Union State Community College to build a new maintenance hangar next to the Delta building.
"We are partnering with them because we want those students that graduate through Southern Union, if they so choose, to come to Auburn and then complete their four year degree in two more years,” Birdsong said.
According to Birdsong, the professional flight program is at their top-end enrollment right now.
"We actually have capped enrollment starting next fall,” Birdsong said.
The high enrollment for Auburn’s aviation serves as a testament to the program’s unique features and capable hands of its faculty and staff.
More information on Auburn's aviation program can be found on their website.
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