Blue Line Aviation expands its fleet with the addition of three new Diamond Aircraft, enabling twenty additional students to learn and creating seven more jobs in Johnston County.
Smithfield, North Carolina (PR Newswire) February 8, 2023
Blue Line Aviation, an independent commercial pilot training school in Smithfield, North Carolina has grown the flight school’s fleet to 31 aircraft with the addition of three new Diamond DA-40 NG planes.
Together, the new airplanes represent a $1.5 million (approximately) investment in education in Johnston County. This investment is just a small portion of the total order for 50 Diamond aircraft that Blue Line originally placed in 2021 and further exercised the additional 50 options in that order in 2022.
Commercial airline pilots are in demand. According to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS), over 18,000 pilots are needed per year through 2031, with an average pay of $134,630. And Blue Line’s goal is to help fill the positions with highly skilled pilots that have been trained at Blue Line.
With its growing Diamond Fleet, Blue Line Aviation will now be able to train an additional twenty students each year, and the purchase will create seven new jobs in Johnston County.
“The addition of these airplanes will play an integral role in our tireless efforts to train the next generation of professional aviators” says Adam Walters, President of Blue Line Aviation.
The new aircraft purchase will directly impact the recipient of this years ‘Fly Right Scholarship’. The newly announced Blue Line flight training scholarship will award $100,000 to a graduate of Johnston County Public Schools. The opportunity to pilot these state-of-the-art planes will be an invaluable asset for the student chosen.
“In spite of the efforts of some in the local government, Blue Line continues to grow. We look forward to announcing further expansion plans soon, which will include relocating some assets from Johnston County to a new training center” says Trey Walters, Co-Founder of Blue Line Aviation.”
For more information about Blue Line Aviation or the Fly Right Scholarship program, please visit www.bluelineaviation.com