Colorado Pilots Association Scholarship

We at the Colorado Pilots Association recognize the need to continue growing the population of pilots in Colorado. To that end, we have taken a two pronged approach, offering scholarships for Private Pilot, and Certificated Flight instructor training. Up to two scholarships annually are available in each area, valued at $2500 each.

The Private Pilot scholarship is available to Colorado citizens ages 16-22. You must have started your flight training, and successfully soloed in order to apply. See below for the details on the Private Pilot page and application. While development of professional pilots is a priority, a planned career in aviation is not a requirement.

The Certificated Flight Instructor program is available to any Colorado citizen holding a Commercial Pilot certificate and Instrument rating, interested in their initial CFI training. We will not award funds for a Sport Pilot Instructor rating, nor for additional ratings on an existing CFI certificate. Again, formal enrollment is required in a flight school program. We recognized there are many excellent freelance CFIs teaching this program, however we cannot disperse funds to an individual. More details can be found on the CFI page and application under the CFI Program below. The intention of making flight instruction a long term career is a plus, but it is not required.

We shifted in 2020 from academic to flight training scholarships, in hopes of building the number of pilots in our great state. While we struggled to attempt to include financing all aspects of flight training like FAA exams and examiner’s fees, in the end we streamlined the process, intending to fund strictly aircraft (and possibly simulator) rental, and Instructor fees. We recognized that our awards, while substantial, are not complete funding for the certificates sought by our applicants.

The deadline to apply for any scholarship is June 1st 2021. The scholarship committee will review all applications, certifications, and letters of recommendation in early July. We will contact applicants in mid to late July to schedule a virtual interview, either via telephone or video conference. The awards of scholarships could happen as early as the end of August. Funds will be deposited in the accounts of the winners at their flight school. Scholarship winners, and guests are invited to attend our annual meeting in November, and the winner and a guest are invited to attend our annual holiday party in December.