Hillsboro Aero Academy (HAA), a helicopter and airplane pilot career flight training school, announced that it has expanded its partnership with Meritize, a developer of funding solutions for skills-based education and workforce development, to include a loan program for helicopter students. Meritize’s program had previously been available only to HAA’s airplane students.

With a Meritize Loan, students can get credit for their merit and potentially improve their loan options by sharing academic history or military experience. If approved, full deferment during school may be available for certain products.

The financing option comes at a crucial time for aspiring helicopter pilots in the US. As the industry bounces back from Covid-19 and resumes steady growth, the long-term shortage in helicopter pilots has produced an urgent need for new helicopter training program graduates. Helicopter students seeking to fulfill that need have historically lacked viable financing options; the Meritize-HAA partnership offers fresh potential for students to fulfill their dreams of a career in helicopters.

“The Meritize program has been extremely valuable to us in our mission to provide aspiring pilots with financially accessible training,” said Natalia Cimpean, CEO of Hillsboro Aero Academy. “We are delighted to expand this option to our helicopter school so that more students have the potential to achieve their dream of flight.”