College adjacent to LaGuardia Airport recruits diverse students to become pilots, aircraft mechanics, and more
NEW YORK --As staffing shortages have ripple effects across the air travel industry, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects nearly 17,000 job openings for airline and commercial pilots this year.
That's why local institutions are recruiting and training diverse candidates to become pilots, aircraft mechanics, and more.
Students at Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology, adjacent to LaGuardia Airport, can find inspiration outside the classroom window.
"You can always go up to the watchtower and see things from a different perspective," engineering major Kenny Harris said.
The college has been in East Elmhurst since 1941, serving roughly 1,150 students pursuing master's, bachelor's, associate's, and certificate programs in aviation, engineering, technology, and management.
Graduates become pilots, dispatchers, aircraft maintenance technicians, and more.
"Many of them are going to go on to work for organizations such as NASA and also perhaps Boeing," chemistry professor Marlyn Goya said.
Students are preparing to enter a workforce with high demand. The FAA told the CBS New York Investigates team that New York's main air traffic controller center is staffed at just 54%.
According to research conducted by CAA, the global aviation industry will need 1.3 million new professionals over the next decade.
Christine Boynton, senior editor of air transport at Aviation Week, says that retirements and a post-pandemic surge in air travel have contributed to airline staffing shortages.
New frontiers, including electric aircraft, could mean job creation.
"This is an industry that is always evolving. It's always growing, and it's very resilient," said Boynton.
That's why Vaughn is looking to enroll a student body as diverse as Queens itself, and attract applicants with immersive technology, including flight simulators and an air traffic control lab.
While cost has long been a barrier to entering the field, Vaughn's president and CEO Dr. Sharon DeVivo says federal and state aid can help.
"Some institutional aid, outside scholarships, all of that contributes," she said. "There are some airlines that are doing $100,000 sign-on bonuses to cover the cost of the training."
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