FLYING Magazine
Thrust Flight, based at Falcon Field Airport (KFFZ) in Arizona, has picked up a contract to provide fixed-wing pilot training for members of the Phoenix Police Department.
According to school officials, this is the first time Thrust Flight, a noted accelerated training program, has worked with a municipal law enforcement agency. Training began on March 1.
Thrust Flight will deliver ratings for private pilot (PPL), commercial pilot (CPL), instrument rating (IR), certified flight instructor (CFI), and certified flight instructor-instrument (CFII) under Part 141 at its Mesa campus, 20 miles east of Phoenix.
According to the school, the candidates for training will be selected internally by the PPD based on departmental criteria and operational needs. The mission of the pilots will be determined internally as well.
The five-year contract includes training for approximately two students per certificate annually across the five types.
The students will train in Piper Archer TXs and Seminoles equipped with G1000 avionics and air conditioning.
The program mandates specific completion timelines—20 weeks for the private and commercial certificates, 12 weeks for the instrument rating, and 16 weeks for instructor certificates. The school operates with self-examining authority, which generally allows for quicker completion of training as the students don’t have to wait for a DPE to be available for a check ride.
“Being selected by the city of Phoenix for fixed-wing pilot training reflects the need for programs that are efficient, flexible, and built around real operational requirements,” said Patrick Arnzen, CEO of Thrust Flight, in a news release. “From day one, our focus is graduating pilots who are ready to meet the demands of the mission.”
Thrust Flight has been providing accelerated training for more than 15 years. The school also has three other locations in Texas, which, like the Mesa facility, offer accelerated training designed to take students from zero time to their instructor rating so they can begin building hours toward an airline career.