Taxi to Takeoff!! Aviation Academy

Stewarding Ohio's future aviation professionals

Students in front of a helicopter

The Ohio State University’s Taxi to Takeoff!! program is an innovative partnership with Ohio high schools to foster aviation education and workforce development. The four-semester immersive program is held at The Ohio State University Airport Don Scott Field.

Ohio’s leadership in flight is unrivaled. Beginning with the Wright Brothers, the state has a record of success in the nation’s aviation achievements. Today, aviation and aerospace contribute nearly $40 billion annually to Ohio’s economy. Taxi to Takeoff!! was established to cultivate the next generation of Ohio’s aviation innovators.

Prospective student information

  • Priority enrollment is given to students in the following districts: Columbus City Schools, Dublin Schools, Hilliard City Schools and Worthington Schools. Students from other districts may participate as space allows, on a first-come first-serve basis.
  • Share this webpage with your school guidance counselor to discuss the opportunity and request support with the program enrollment process
  • Program completion provides a foundation for further advancement, including through studies across a variety of two- and four-year post-secondary programs, flight training, jobs utilizing drone operation and military service
  • For every pilot job that exists, there are approximately 100 support positions – students are invited to explore applying a variety of interests to the aviation industry

Next steps:

Educator and administrator resources

  • Programming aims to create an affinity between students and the aviation industry through exploration of the places and opportunities where skills and interests can best be invested

  • Students have the opportunity to earn Career-Technical Assurance Guide (CTAG) credit upon successful completion of the two-year course and associated exams

  • The courses provide instruction aimed to prepare students to earn the Federal Aviation Administration Part 107 and UAS Level 1 industry credentials

  • Students from multiple central Ohio schools are already participating
  • Partner districts provide information and best practices to enable you to support your students’ participation
  • Transportation to in-person courses at The Ohio State University Airport is the responsibility of the student or school district
  • Classes typically meet four times weekly
  • Opportunity exists for schools to supplement the experience through district-led activities at their schools

Next steps:

Coursework

Note: Classes meet Mondays - Thursdays in-person from 8 - 9:20 a.m. at The Ohio State University Airport

Year One

Autumn semester
  • Introduction to Aviation 706: This course is foundational for both crewed and uncrewed aviation and will prepare students to take either of two Federal Aviation Administration tests: the Private Pilot Knowledge Test or the Part 107 Remote Pilot Knowledge Test. Topics include preflight procedures, airspace, radio communications, aviation phraseology, regulations, airport operations, aviation safety, aviation weather, cockpit management and emergency procedures.  
Spring semester

  • Small UAS Operations 707: This course will cover small uncrewed aircraft performance, ethics, human factors, aeronautical decision-making and judgment, safety protocols, weight and balance, maintenance, aviation weather sources and effects of weather (micrometeorology) on small uncrewed aircraft performance, small uncrewed aircraft loading and performance, emergency procedures, crew resource management, and preflight inspection procedures. Students will be provided the opportunity to participate in multiple practice examinations in preparation  to take the Federal Aviation Administration’s Part 107 Remote Pilot Knowledge Test upon completion of this course. *Students will have the opportunity to earn the remote pilot Part 107 sUAS Certification and be prepared to take the written portion of the private pilot certification exam through this academy.  

Year two

Autumn semester

  • Aviation Airport Management (course number not yet available): Learners will distinguish between controlled and non-towered fields and apply management principles to airport environments. They will interpret and use weather, Automatic Terminal Information Systems  (ATIS) and Traffic Collision Avoidance Systems (TCAS) to control aircraft operations, and they will sequence aircraft approaches and departures with approach control radar. Additional topics include airport lighting, navigation principles and avionic communication systems including very high frequency (VHF), ultrahHigh frequency (UHF), radio and phraseology.

Spring semester

  • Aviation Meteorology and the Flying Environment (course number not yet available): Students will apply principles of meteorology forecasting to aviation. They will take, record, encode and disseminate surface weather observations using forecasting equipment. Topics include concepts of aviation  meteorology in the study of temperature, pressure, moisture, stability, clouds, air masses, fronts,  thunderstorms, icing and fog. Additionally, students will interpret and use weather information for preflight and in-flight support to aviation. 

Students seated in a classroom with instructor at the front
"We are at the dawn of a new era of aviation with the rise of autonomous vehicles, new forms of propulsion, and increased environmental consciousness. This is all happening while the industry maintains its legacy of being the safest mode of transportation ever developed. Taxi to Takeoff!! encourages students to think about the larger concepts and prepares them for a future that does not yet exist."
– Brian Strzempkowski, interim director, Center for Aviation Studies

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