NEWS RELEASE

Communications and Marketing Office
600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd.
Daytona Beach, FL 32114-3900

For more information, contact:
Phone: 386-226-6157
Fax: 386-226-6158

NOTE: Embry-Riddle no longer administers this program.
Contact www.captprogram.com

Elite Pilot-Training Program Draws Overwhelming Response


Daytona Beach, Fla., Oct. 6, 2003 -- At a time when many believe there is no demand for airline pilots, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's new Commercial Airline Pilot Training (CAPT) Program has attracted an overwhelming response from would-be professional pilots.

After announcing plans for the new program last year, Embry-Riddle received more than 2,000 inquiries and hundreds of applications. The first class began training in Daytona Beach, Fla., in August 2003. The CAPT Program limits enrollment to 12 students each month.

"Our first two classes were full, and we've registered 28 more students for subsequent classes. We're very pleased with the program's enthusiastic reception and the exceptional caliber of the applicants," said Paul Woessner, CAPT Program executive director.

"The CAPT Program takes advantage of opportunities created by an anticipated shortage of qualified pilots, unprecedented growth of the regional airline industry, and market demand," said George Ebbs, president of Embry-Riddle. "It is our practical response to the needs of the aviation industry."

The CAPT Program is designed for a limited number of elite candidates who have the skills, abilities, motivation, determination, and dedication to be trained to the regional airline standard.

The innovative program produces graduates who meet or exceed domestic regional airline hiring standards within 12 months. Prior flight training is not required. However, candidates who have a commercial pilot's license with instrument and multi-engine ratings can complete the program in four to five months.

Before receiving flight training in the CAPT Program, applicants must be at least 21 years of age, have a minimum of a bachelor's degree, satisfy all background checks, and obtain a first-class medical certificate with an EKG test. They are also tested for logical reasoning, hand-eye coordination, and mental arithmetic skills. Applicants also take a lesson in a flight-training device and are interviewed by the training captain and program director.

"This new venture is a natural extension of Embry-Riddle's expertise and serves a vital industry and student segment," said Guy McClurkan, vice president of Affiliate Operations at Embry-Riddle. "Despite the availability of furloughed and traditionally trained pilots, the industry is coming up short in hiring well-trained, qualified, employable pilots prepared to meet the challenges of a high-tech regional jet cockpit and airline crew environment."

Embry-Riddle worked with several leading regional airlines to develop the CAPT Program to the exclusive specifications of the domestic regional airline industry, with a goal of guaranteeing employability of graduates.

The CAPT Program's challenging regimen includes an intense pilot-selection process, followed by crew-based training, comprehensive academic courses, and advanced flight training in modern aircraft and full-motion simulators with "glass cockpit" avionics and integrated flight systems.

Upon acceptance, students fly one lesson and attend two noncredit aeronautical classes per day five days a week. The program gives candidates 550 hours of total flight experience, plus jet-transition training including up to 80 hours of "logged time" in a CAE-built Level-D full-motion flight simulator. Students earn an FAA airman's license with commercial, multi-engine, instrument ratings and a pilot-in-command limited commercial type rating for an MD-90 airliner.

CAPT Program candidates complete 16 academic aeronautical courses including advanced avionics, air transport pilot test preparation, airport security, aviation law, crew resource management, hazardous materials training, high-altitude meteorology, high-altitude physiology, hydraulic systems, jet aircraft performance, labor law, and turbine engine systems.

The CAPT Program's training aircraft are state-of-the-art DA-40 composite single-engine DiamondStars from Diamond Aircraft. The fleet is equipped with the latest Garmin Avionics suite composed of the 530/430/330 units, including the new Mode S traffic information system. Multi-engine training, which is currently being conducted in similarly equipped Piper Seminole aircraft, will be done in Diamond's new diesel-powered twin-engine DA-42 TwinStar when the aircraft is certified, which is expected in late 2004.

In the fall of 2004, the CAPT Program will relocate from Daytona Beach to brand-new classroom, hangar, office, and ramp facilities at Flagler County Airport in Bunnell, Fla., approximately 30 miles northwest of Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach campus.

To learn more about Embry-Riddle's CAPT Program, go to www.erau.edu/capt or call (877) 577-CAPT.

The CAPT Program is part of Embry-Riddle's Affiliate Operations division, which develops and operates commercial business ventures that build on the university's expertise in aviation and aerospace. Other programs include an exclusive contract to deliver introductory flight training to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., as well as aviation maintenance technology and avionics line-maintenance training programs.

Embry-Riddle, the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, meets the needs of students and industry through its educational, training, research, and consulting activities. Embry-Riddle educates more than 25,000 students annually through the master's level at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., at more than 130 teaching centers in the United States and Europe, and through distance learning.