Embry-Riddle ROTC Cadets Score Clean Sweep in Air Force Pilot Slot Selection
Prescott, AZ., April 17, 2012
Thirteen Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets from the Prescott, Ariz., campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University saw their careers take off last month when they were chosen for pilot slots in the U.S. Air Force. All of the eligible candidates who applied were selected. One air battle manager was also selected.
At Embry-Riddle’s Daytona Beach, Fla., campus, 17 of 21 cadets were selected for Air Force pilot slots. Sixteen were picked to be pilots and one to be a combat systems operator. Four students who competed but were not selected were in Air Force “critical majors.” Only 25 percent of cadets with degrees in fields the Air Force considers critical, such as electrical engineering, computer engineering and applied meteorology, were given pilot slots.
Selection criteria include a student’s pilot score, which combines the Air Force Officers Qualifying Test, pilot and flight simulator performance and personal flight hours; ranking by the commanding officer; college grade point average; physical fitness; and a field training component.
Embry-Riddle prepares more Air Force pilots than any other source after the U.S. Air Force Academy. The Prescott campus produces more pilots than any other school or academy in the Southwest.
“Embry-Riddle is proud to partner with the U.S. Air Force to produce the finest officers and pilots to graduate from the Reserve Officer Training Corps,” said Frank Ayers, executive vice president and chief academic officer at the Prescott campus. “These pilot selection rate percentages attest to that quality.”
“Year in and out, cadets from Embry-Riddle garner approximately 15 percent more top rankings when they compete with their peers from across the nation,” said Stephen Luxion, department chair of Air Force ROTC at the Daytona Beach campus. “This is a testament to the programs, opportunities and education our cadets get at Embry-Riddle.”
PHOTO: The successful Air Force cadets from Embry-Riddle’s Prescott campus are (L-R) Carlos Diaz, from Mountain View, Calif.; Scott Loney, Justin, Texas; Sebastian Hill, Seatac, Wash.; Matthew Morse, Grass Valley, Calif.; Kate Cummings, Wheat Ridge/Lakewood, Colo.; Joshua Williams, Lakeville, Minn.; Treavor B. Arias, Divide, Colo.; Matthew Kamp, Santa Claus, Ind.; Zach Namestnik, Canadaigua, N.Y.; Lyle Ratcliffe, Issaquah, Wash.; Andrea Barry, Colorado Springs, Colo.; Oliver Ngayan, Sahuarita, Ariz.; and Eric Christensen, Portland, Ore.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, is a nonprofit, independent institution offering more than 40 baccalaureate, master's and Ph.D. degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business and Engineering. Embry-Riddle educates students at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., and through the Worldwide Campus with more than 150 locations in the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. The university is a major research center, seeking solutions to real-world problems in partnership with the aerospace industry, other universities and government agencies. For more information, visit http://www.embryriddle.edu, follow us on Twitter (@EmbryRiddle) and facebook.com/EmbryRiddleUniversity, and find expert videos at YouTube.com/EmbryRiddleUniv.
