Delta Forms Partnership to Increase Diversity

Delta Air Lines is entering a new partnership between Delta’s Propel Pilot Career Path Program and Inter American University of Puerto Rico’s School of Aeronautics. The Delta Propel program will offer qualified Inter American aviation students two paths to becoming a career Delta pilot, either flying for one of the Delta Connection Carriers or flying military aircraft for the Air National Guard or Reserves.

Propel is an integral part of Delta's efforts to actively seek diversity, boldly pursue equity and consciously promote inclusion. As the airline works to diversify the future of flight, the Propel program mentors these students so that they are best equipped to meet the high standards required to become a Delta Pilot. Ethnic minorities are some of the most underrepresented groups among Delta's pilot workforce, and the new partnership with Inter American is one of the ways Delta is working to close that gap.

“The Inter American University of Puerto Rico School of Aeronautics is the only program in the Caribbean to offer bachelor’s degrees in different areas of Airway Sciences,” said Dr. Carlos J. Olivares, Chancellor of the Bayamón campus. “For more than 30 years, the School of Aeronautics has prepared professional pilots with solid background skills to contribute positively to the global aviation community.  Definitively, this partnership with Delta is an example of what we want to achieve with our students,” said Dr. Carlos J. Olivares, Chancellor of the Bayamón campus.”

Delta Propel was launched in 2018 in partnership with eight universities to identify, select and develop the next generation of pilots. This new partnership marks Delta’s 12th partnership and is the first new partnership since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as its first Propel Pilot Career Path Program partnership for Delta outside the contiguous U.S.

After a rigorous interview and evaluation process, Delta will offer successful candidates a Qualified Job Offer, detailing a defined path and accelerated timeline to become a Delta pilot. Selected candidates will also accumulate flight hours by instructing at the university where they trained. Delta will also offer selected candidates one-to-one mentoring with an experienced Delta pilot.

Interested in more on diversity in the industry? Read  Woefully Under-Represented.

This approach to recruiting and professional development allows Delta to offer support and flexibility for future aviators, as it expects to hire many pilots over the next decade to staff the thousands of flights it operates around the world. Currently the Delta Propel College Career Path Program has accepted hundreds of students with plans to open the next college application window in Fall 2021.

The Delta Propel Program has plans to announce additional partnerships in fall of 2021.