![Paragon Flight Training and Sallie Mae form a lending partnership to address financial barriers for aspiring pilots. [Courtesy: Paragon Flight]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/08/vlcsnap-2025-03-24-20h22m02s867-67e1f7367a001.png)
One of the most challenging aspects of learning to fly is finding the money to pay for the training.
Students at Paragon Flight Training will now have the opportunity to take advantage of student loan financing through Sallie Mae, an institution that has been providing loans for trade schools and flight academies for more than 40 years.
Paragon Flight Training opened in 2006 and has trained thousands of pilots, ranging from recreational to professional. The school’s professional pilot program has seen record-high enrollment in the past few years because of the so-called pilot shortage.
- READ MORE: Paragon Flight Training Expands in Georgia
Paragon Flight offers training under both Part 141 and Part 61.
According to Paragon Flight president Christopher Schoensee, an estimated 80 percent of the flight school’s clients are self-funded, using scholarships, personal funds, bank loans, or credit cards to pay for their training.
“But not everyone has that kind of money laying around or those options,” Schoensee told FLYING.
He added that the school often hears from potential students who want to do their training at Paragon, but because of loan requirements, have to seek training at degree programs such as colleges and universities approved by lenders but take longer to complete than the program offered by Paragon.
“Having Sallie Mae as a funding option opens up the doors for these people to come to our program,” Schoensee said.
In order to offer Sallie Mae-backed funding, Paragon Flight had to go through a rigorous and expensive compliance program, which school officials say was done to expand options for students.
Sallie Mae provides loans for students attending privately held trade schools and flight academies, offering 100 percent financing for tuition and related fees, no origination fee, and a .25 percent discount when payments are made with autopay.
Changes in 529 Plans
Paragon Flight is also expecting an influx of clients, as there have been changes to the rules regarding 529 plans for education.
“A 529 plan is like a 401(k) for education,” said Schoensee. “It allows parents to put away tax-free money for their children’s education. Most flight schools were not included because they were not degree programs. Now the [One] Big Beautiful Bill [Act] changes that and allows 529 funds to be used for trade schools that grant certificates. In the past we had to turn away people who wanted to use 529 funds, because funding for trade schools was done on a state-by-state basis. The passage of the bill makes it national.”
Schoensee anticipates the combination of Sallie Mae and 529 funding options will make flight training more accessible.
“To maintain America’s leadership in commercial aviation, we must invest in pilot training,” he said. “Paragon Flight is stepping up by making flight education accessible to more candidates. We offer what very few schools can—the financial security for students to complete their training. This empowers them to choose the best program, and we believe it makes Paragon a top contender.”
Many students are forced to terminate their training when they run out of money. Flying has a physical as well as a cognitive component. It’s easy to get rusty, and when the pilot returns to training several months or years later, they must repeat their previous efforts to regain their skills. This increases the cost of their education and further delays entry into the aviation workforce.
“The core of our student-first loan philosophy is to only work with stable and reliable lending partners,” Schoensee said. “Sallie Mae, with its stringent requirements, solid reputation, and 45-year history in student lending, will be an excellent student loan partner and serve our students well in their pursuit of high-paying aviation careers without a financially induced interruption in their education. At Paragon Flight, we promote and are committed to the student experience. The new Sallie Mae program is another positive aspect of that experience.”
Paragon Flight is one of the largest flight schools in the United States, with multiple locations in Florida and one in LaGrange, Georgia. Students learn in a fleet composed of Piper PA-28 Pilots 100i, Piper PA-44-180 Seminoles, and Cirrus SR20 G6s.
