Candidates Will Now Work As Flight Instructors At CAE Phoenix To Gain The Required Hours

The first class of candidates has graduated from the training portion of Gateway Select, JetBlue's pilot recruiting pathway. The first group of pilots has completed their primary classroom, technical and flight training and will now continue on a path to receiving their Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate by earning their FAA-mandated 1,500 hours of flying time as flight instructors. After instructing for two years, they will begin flying as first officers at JetBlue, as early as 2020.

“Following a rigorous selection process and extensive training, we’re proud to see the first cohort complete the training portion of our Gateway Select program,” said Warren Christie, senior vice president of safety, security and air operations, JetBlue. “This milestone with the first class further proves our competency-based pathway works and provides a new path of entry for those who never saw commercial aviation as a career option.”

JetBlue partners with CAE to deliver Gateway Select’s training curriculum. This milestone is the first from this innovative program which trains high-quality pilots based on aptitude. The program is being completed in cohort classes. There are currently four classes in various stages of the program ranging from private pilot training through positions as Flight Instructors.

Cohort one started in August 2016 and has completed the training curriculum portion of the program. This first class went through airline and skills-based training at JetBlue’s state-of-the art training campus – JetBlue University in Orlando, and gained flying experience at CAE Phoenix, CAE’s aviation academy in Mesa, AZ. As flight instructors, the candidates will pass the baton providing flight instruction to Cohort three, currently in the finishing stages of their classroom learning.

“Gateway Select was designed to help make pilot careers more accessible to a broader range of candidates,” Christie said. “We remain committed to recruiting a diverse talent pipeline with our seven Gateway Programs by continuing to partner with colleges, technical schools and other organizations that also seek to make the commercial pilot ranks more accessible.”

“CAE is proud to be the training partner of choice of this historic cadet creation program,” said Nick Leontidis, CAE’s Group president, Civil Aviation Training Solutions. “It is part of our mission to grow and train tomorrow’s pilots to the highest standards. Congratulations to the first cohort of JetBlue’s Gateway Select future pilots.”

As JetBlue commemorates this milestone, the airline is currently accepting applications for the next round of candidates slated to start training as early as fall of 2018.

(Source: JetBlue news release. Image from file)

FMI: pilots.jetblue.com/gateway-select