UND Aerospace to Train More Than 200 Pilots From India

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences
Contact: Chuck Pineo/Phone: 701-777-4757
June 25, 2008

UND Aerospace to Train More Than 200 Pilots From India

(Grand Forks, North Dakota): UND Aerospace at the University of North Dakota (UND), announces a three-year agreement with Bharati Vidyapeeth University (BVU) in Pune, India to provide a one-year pilot training program for the BVU Aviation program. Over the three-year period, UND Aerospace will educate more than 200 students in Lumberton, North Carolina at their facility with Roberson Community College.

Students will earn a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Commercial Instrument rating and incorporate the pilot training into their BVU Aviation degree. The UND-BVU agreement foresees growth to a minimum of 80 students per year.

Don Dubuque, Director of Extension Programs, said, “We, along with our partners at Robeson Community College are excited to deliver the flight education for BVU’s aviation degree program. Students will complete their academic requirements at BVU and transfer the credit hours from their flight training in the USA to BVU to meet their graduation requirements.”

Bruce Smith, UND Aerospace Foundation (UNDAF) President and CEO, said, “This is a further validation of how far the word about the professional reputation of the Odegard School has spread throughout the world. More and more the international students are becoming an integral and important part of our success. They not only bring the wonderful diversity and unique culture from India to our universities, but the BVU students will also return home with a positive experience, an accurate picture of collegiate education in the United States, and most importantly with their certificates as pilots from a quality flight training program.”

About UND Aerospace:
UND Aerospace, which includes the Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences at the University of North Dakota and the UND Aerospace Foundation (UNDAF), is an international leader in collegiate and contract aviation education and training services flying over 90,000 hours per year in over 120 aircraft. UNDAF also has facilities in Spokane, Washington, with Spokane Falls Community College; Lumberton, North Carolina, with Robeson Community College; Phoenix, Arizona, in conjunction with Chandler-Gilbert Community College; and Crookston, Minnesota, with the University of Minnesota in addition to its home-base in Grand Forks, North Dakota. With more than 1,900 students from throughout the world, the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences is the second largest college at the University of North Dakota. Undergraduate and graduate programs leading to a variety of rewarding careers in aerospace are offered through five different academic departments: aviation, atmospheric sciences, computer science, earth system science and policy, and space studies. The UND Aerospace training complex is the most technologically advanced environment for aerospace education, training and research in the world.

In 2008, UND Aerospace is celebrating its 40th anniversary. A series of regional alumni gatherings will be held across the country, as well as several events during UND’s Homecoming and 125th anniversary on October 13-18. For an updated listing of events, see www.undaerospace.com or www.undalumni.org. For more information on UND Aerospace, contact Karen Ryba at 701-777-4761 or go to www.aero.und.edu.

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