Perhaps at no time in modern history has the airline industry’s pilot shortage been so acute. Retirements and pandemic-era layoffs led to a mass exodus of pilots, and the country desperately needs to train more.
According to Boeing, a leader in the airline industry, an estimated 674,000 new pilots will be needed to meet global demand through the year 2043. A significant portion of that pilot demand would be needed for carriers at DFW International Airport, which currently competes with Dubai as the second-busiest airport in the world.
Texas Woman’s University is addressing that shortage with the fall 2024 launch of the Doswell School of Aeronautical Sciences, making TWU the only four-year university in North Texas to offer a bachelor’s degree in aviation. The program offers two tracks, one that prepares pilots to obtain commercial licenses and another that prepares them for jobs in aviation management.
Women make up only about 5% of commercial pilots, but the Doswell School will provide a consistent presence and source of female aviators.
The school has an advisory committee of industry representatives, including members from regional airlines, and the aviation program is in the process of obtaining permanent certification and restricted Airline Transport Pilot exemption. At that point, the school will apply for cadet program memberships with various airlines to send TWU aviation graduates into the industry.
While classroom instruction takes place on the TWU Denton campus, flight training is provided by the US Aviation Academy at the Denton Enterprise Airport.
The initial class in fall 2024 maxed out at 24 students, just near the cohort target of 25.
Clint Grant, the director of the aviation program, said 25 students is an optimal class size, considering the need to offer one-on-one flight instruction.
“It’s a tough, long road,” Grant said. “It goes beyond just four years of college.”
Grant noted that, besides the expense associated with flight training, a deep commitment from the student is essential to complete what is considered a lengthy process to gain all the essential certifications on the way to becoming a pilot for a commercial airline. Even with a a bachelor’s degree through Texas Woman’s aviation program, a prospective pilot would need to log a required 1,000 hours of flying time before he or she could obtain an air transport pilot’s certificate, which is the certification required to become a commercial pilot for a major airline.
Before the program’s first class met, one class member secured the largest scholarship in the history of Texas Woman’s University, a $140,000 full, four-year ride funded by TBMOPA, the TBM Owners and Pilots Association. The scholarship was awarded to Danah Alramahi, a freshman from nearby Coppell.
Like her classmates, Alramahi was undeterred by the challenges to overcome before she taxis an aircraft onto a runway. Although TWU is one of the most affordable universities in the nation, the price of learning to fly far exceeds the cost of tuition and fees. Over four years, the price tag just for flight training is more than $100,000.
“That’s something you learn very early on when you’re looking at schools, to factor in cost,” Alramahi said. “You don’t just look at the tuition. You have to search up their specific flight program, what planes you’ll be flying, how long it’ll take, their cost of gas for the plane, the instructor cost.
“It all adds up to quite a big sum. But this was my dream, my passion, the only thing I ever talked about wanting to do, so I knew I was going to pursue it no matter what. Even if it meant taking different jobs, taking out loans, applying for whatever student aid there was, I was willing to do it as long as it meant I would get to fulfill my dream.”