Two dozen flight students who attended United’s Aviate Academy (UAA) are suing the school over alleged consumer fraud and deceptive trade practices.
According to the lawsuit, UAA students were promised a one-year fast-track pilot training program and certifications that the school could not realistically provide. Students alleged that enrollment began to exceed capacity, leaving them unable to complete required flight hours.
The academy’s one-year program outlined an ambitious timeline: Students would earn a private pilot certificate within two months, an instrument rating two months later and a commercial single-engine certificate three months after that. In the following two months, they were expected to obtain a flight instructor certificate. The final three months were dedicated to earning an instrument flight instructor certificate, along with commercial multiengine and multiengine instructor ratings.
The case noted that UAA charged tens of thousands in tuition while failing to provide enough instructors, aircraft or flight time. Additionally, the suit said that despite a 325-student capacity, enrollment surged to nearly 400 by March 2024.
The students have requested that the Arizona court certify a class action representing UAA students who attended between December 2021 and Jan. 15, 2025—a request now under review by the federal judge.
AVweb reached out to United for comment on the situation, but did not hear back before the article was published.
