Charles City Aeronautics receives certification opening up flight training opportunities

To The Press

Charles City Aeronautics Inc., doing business as North Iowa Air Service (NIAS) in Mason City and Charles City, and Central Iowa Air Service (CIAS) in Ames, announced that Central Iowa Air Service Flight School has become an FAA Part 141 certified flight school.

One of only five FAA Part 141 Flight Schools in Iowa, CIAS Flight School can now partner with local universities and community colleges to develop piloting majors and minors. These partnerships will allow students to use financial aid, grants, and utilize the resources of the schools to achieve their career goals.

“The Central Iowa Air Service Flight Training Department has been working toward this goal for five years, and I am very proud of this team for their work,” said William R. Kyle, president of Charles City Aeronautics.

“Achieving Part 141 certification takes a tremendous amount of time, work and dedication. This team is more than ready to take the CIAS Flight School to the next level,” he said.

Brian Gowen, CIAS director of flight training, said, “CIAS’ Flight School is ready to accept new students and continue growing our school. We are currently working with local community colleges, universities, and with local military veteran groups for use of GI Bill funds. This is a very exciting time for aviation in Ames.”

Christopher Schrodt, Charles City Aeronautics’ flight training manager, said, “With the nationwide pilot shortage, adding an FAA Part 141 School in Ames is a great step forward. Pilots have become the No. 1 hottest job in the country, and this school will allow students of all ages to work toward the career goals of becoming a pilot. We are excited for what the future is going to bring.”

With the growth of the CIAS Flight School, the school will be moving into its own building at the Ames Airport beginning April 2023. Currently the school has four full-time flight instructors and four training aircraft.

Part 141 flight training is geared toward those seeking a career in aviation. While both Part 61 and Part 141 schools have the same information, Part 141 schools follow a more rigorous curriculum approved by the FAA allowing for reduced training time and required hours.

Part 141 schools also provide a published curriculum to follow. Students will always know what they will be covering with their instructor each lesson and what to study for upcoming lessons. This allows for a more efficient training process.

There is also more oversight at Part 141 schools. When a student is coming up on a milestone in their training, they will fly with a lead instructor to evaluate their progress. CIAS’ goal with their Part 141 program is to train professional pilots in the most efficient and cost-effective manner possible.

For the private pilot certificate costs are about the same between Part 61 and Part 141. Students will see the greatest cost savings in Part 141 when going for their commercial rating. Part 141 only requires 190 hours of total training time while Part 61 requires 250 hours.

Flight training can be self-funded or done through private loans or scholarships. Part 141 programs are also often partnered with local colleges or universities allowing students to fund training with student loans or through the G.I. bill.

CIAS is currently working with Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) to build a professional pilot flight training program to take students through the commercial and certified flight instructor (CFI) ratings, Kyle said.