It shows that (BSU is) very invested in the aviation program. They want to see the program grow. This is going to only help it grow.
Growing up in St. Croix, Kendell French, ’26, often gazed in awe at huge airplanes preparing to land on the Caribbean island.
“I talked to the pilots and researched a lot about planes,” recalled Kendell, who is now studying aviation and film production at Bridgewater State. “I felt this was my calling, to become a pilot.”
That dream is becoming a reality thanks to BSU’s aviation and flight training program, which received $1.358 million in federal funding to help students like Kendell obtain the skills needed to become commercial pilots.
The money, secured by U.S. Rep. Bill Keating and other members of Massachusetts’ delegation, funds a hangar and three airplanes for BSU's aviation training center at New Bedford Regional Airport. The planes are already in New Bedford and construction of the hangar is expected to be finished this summer.
The new aircraft include a multi-engine plane that will allow Bridgewater students to obtain more advanced credentials.
They would otherwise have to travel to flight schools across New England to become qualified to fly multi-engine aircraft, an important prerequisite for a successful career as a pilot.
“The multi-engine aircraft is going to make the aviation flight degree a more professional flight degree,” said Mike Farley, an aviation science associate professor and department chairperson.
BSU currently stores planes outdoors, so the hangar will provide shelter from the weather. It will be easier to fly on cold mornings because snow and frost will not accumulate on the aircraft.
The investments will better prepare students to fill a shortage of about 8,000 pilots in North America, a gap that management consulting firm Oliver Wyman estimates will widen in the years ahead. By 2032, the firm projects there will be unmet demand for 80,000 pilots worldwide.
“During the pandemic, many airlines furloughed or laid off their pilots and many of those pilots have not come back. They’ve gone on to other careers,” said Dr. Jeanean Davis-Street, dean of the Ricciardi College of Business. “When you couple that with a mandatory retirement age of 65, there is a huge and growing demand for pilots.”
Davis-Street and Associate Dean Derek Leuenberger led the effort to obtain federal funding with support from offices across campus. BSU officials said they appreciate the strong partnership with Massachusetts’ legislative delegation in the name of supporting students.
“We’re grateful to them for working collaboratively to advance funding for so many initiatives that the nation needs and most particularly that students at BSU need for their aviation career,” Davis-Street said.
Kendell looks forward to learning to master the multi-engine plane, which he said is an impressive, state-of-the-art aircraft.
“It shows that they’re very invested in the aviation program,” he said. “They want to see the program grow. This is going to only help it grow.”
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