A training aircraft sits in Coe College's Aeronautical Field Station at the Eastern Iowa Airport
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA (August 13, 2025) — The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved Coe College's application to operate the ground portion of its aviation management & flight operations program as a Part 141 approved school. Future Kohawk pilots training at Coe's Aeronautical Field Station at the Eastern Iowa Airport (CID) will learn under the rigorous curriculum, which will allow them to pursue an accelerated path to their pilot's license.
To earn the Part 141 designation, Coe underwent a required certification process with the FAA. Beginning in June 2024, Coe began to develop detailed Training Course Outlines for each course to reach compliance with FAA regulations, among other necessities. The process is designed to ensure high standards of safety and training quality.
"It's unusual for a small liberal-arts college to add a flight program," said Coe College Provost Angela Ziskowski. "So while it's been a new process for us, it will allow Coe to deliver the best training for our aviation-management and flight-operations students, and Part 141 is the standard for those who are serious about a career as an aviator."
As a Part 141 flight school, Coe is a go-to option for students seeking a structured and accelerated path to their pilot's license, especially for those with career goals in aviation. Part 141 training involves a more regimented schedule and reduced-flight hour requirements, leading to faster completion times, and lower overall costs.
There will be ongoing oversight from the FAA — and Coe's flight training partner, ATD Flight Systems, is already FAA-certified under Part 141. ATD is now in the final stages of obtaining FAA approval to add Coe as a satellite training location at CID. ATD has a successful 20-year history of providing FAA-approved Part 141 flight training, which will be under the oversight of Chief Flight Instructor Tim Busch at Coe.
The initial class of Kohawk aviators begins this fall, and it is expected that all of them will begin to fly in their first term with ATD under the Part 141 structure.
"Not all aviation programs allow students to fly in their first terms due to program and aircraft restrictions, so we're proud to provide this opportunity for Coe students to take to the skies right away under the care of our partners at ATD," said Senior Vice President for Enrollment, Marketing, and Institutional Effectiveness Julie Staker.
Students can also expect shorter wait times for the practical exams and check rides as ATD holds examining authority from the FAA. Less than sixty flight providers in the United States hold both 141 approval and examining authority. Wait-times for a Designated Pilot Examiner can approach three months, and Kohawks will be able to avoid that challenge with ATD's expedited examining process.
At least three training aircraft will be based at Coe's aeronautical field station at CID. The current pilot shortage is estimated to be at 17,000, and that gap is driving starting salaries for commercial pilots toward $90,000 in some instances.
