Keith Taylor Moves Into The Cockpit For Envoy Air

Among the 24 pilots who were hired by Envoy Air earlier this week was Keith Taylor, who is the first graduate of American Airlines Cadet Academy.

American established the academy to provide a consistent supply of qualified pilots for the carrier in light of the looming pilot shortage predicted by the industry in the coming years. On its website, The Academy says that prospective pilots with little or no flight experience can now begin their career track without the complexity and uncertainty traditionally associated with flight training.

In the American Airlines Cadet Academy, pilot candidates train with one of the airline's carefully selected flight schools and are paired with an American Airlines pilot mentor to walk with them through the program. The airline has also established Discover Student Loans as a dedicated program lender, so the financial aspect of training is simplified. On completion of the  program, American guarantees an interview with one of its three wholly owned regional carriers; Envoy, PSA, and Piedmont, though it does not guarantee a job with one of the airlines.

Television station KXAS reports that Capt. Ric Wilson, Vice President of Flight Operations for Envoy, said Taylor is "critical to our program of finding qualified pilots, and not only qualified but someone that just goes above and beyond and represents the type of diversity and inclusion that we want at American Airlines and he just stands out."

Taylor grew up in Jacksonville, FL and studied Aviation and Political Science at Jacksonville University before joining the AA Cadet Academy. He said he's had a passion for flying since he was young. He learned to fly at 14, and now feels like he's fulfilling a lifelong dream to become an airline pilot. “It’s almost like going to the minor leagues for major baseball and now I’m in Triple-A and then next when I get to American that’s when I finally make it into the major leagues, so it’s definitely a good feeling,” he told KXAS.

(Source: American Airlines Cadet Academy and as cited. Image from file)

FMI: www.aacadetacademy.com/CadetAcademy/Index
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