Parks College Aviation is struggling to fulfill the needs of the largest freshman class ever.

According to Charles Kirkpatrick, Dean of Parks College, “The big problem is not the large freshman class but finding enough flight instructors.”

Three elements need to be in place in order to deliver the flight program: airplanes, simulators and instructors.

“Our aircraft fleet and simulator equipment are adequately sized for the number of flight students, but we are currently limited by the availability of flight instructors,” Kirkpatrick said.

According to Kirkpatrick, the University has provided adequate resources for delivery of the program. But the job market for pilots is so strong that collegiate aviation programs nationally are having trouble attracting qualified individuals into academic aviation.

Twenty full-time flight instructors are now employed, with two positions remaining to be filled. Interviews for these positions were conducted last week, but the applicants did not meet the qualifications for the job, Kirkpatrick said.

“Filling these positions with qualified individuals as soon as possible continues to be a priority for the department,” according to Alan Stolzer, associate dean for Aviation.

The job market is excellent, which makes Saint Louis University look good. People who go into the career of aviation have good job security, according to Kirkpatrick.

“Universities are picking up the slack because the military is downsizing,” Kirkpatrick said. “Most aviation programs around the country are filling up.”

Last year the Provost approved a new compensation plan which makes SLU more competitive and will ease in the hiring of two new instructors, Kirkpatrick said.

As long as students complete all of their flight time, the schedule is pretty flexible. “We shoot for freshmen to be at the same proficiency level by the end of spring semester,” Kirkpatrick said.

Gary Northam, academic department chair of Aviation Science, said that Parks College is “going to be okay.”

According to Stolzer and Northam, 211 students are currently enrolled in flight courses for the fall semester. Just under 200 students have flight slots at the present time. The remaining students will be placed as soon as the instructor positions are filled.

“There is enough time in a 24-hour day for flight slots. We just need more instructors,” he said.

“This a positive thing for SLU,” Kirkpatrick said. “There is a lot of interest from quality students in this good program.”

However, the student opinion of Parks College is not as positive as the faculty’s.

“It’s just harder to get a plane or a simulator,” said Patti Murphy, a sophomore pilot. “I don’t think our education should be jeopardized because the University admitted too many new students.”

Murphy said that she thinks Parks College should plan ahead each year as to how many flight instructors to hire.

“They know that getting a position at an airline is a pilot’s priority,” Murphy said.

“They should just have a backup plan for when there is a shortage of instructors,” Murphy added.

Pilot Matt LeBlanc said, “As far as scheduling goes, I’m lucky that I’m a sophomore and get priority.”

“It’s a shame because we’re one of the best programs with a good reputation, but we just don’t have enough equipment,” LeBlanc said.

“There are slot times between 6:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m,” LeBlanc said. “Each slot is full, and some students still don’t have slots.”

But LeBlanc sees the silver lining in this cloud.

“The greatest thing is that we have an excellent program with a good background,” LeBlanc said. “The program is simply growing more than the school is.”

“We have so many enthusiastic kids from all over the country-it’s awesome,” LeBlanc said.

As far as equipment goes, Kirkpatrick is confident that Parks College has enough supplies.

“The size of the training aircraft fleet and the number of available simulator hours are adequate to handle the number of students in the program,” Kirkpatrick said.

Five new Frasca simulators have been purchased for use in the flight program and should be installed over the Christmas break. Kirkpatrick also said that the school is preparing a proposal for the replacement of some of the older aircraft in the fleet.