Students enrolled in Leading Edge Flight Academy of Bend, Oregon who need tuition or financial
assistance will now have access to an innovative new financing option to pay for their courses, thanks to our partnership with the Meritize platform.
The new financing option will help students finance their careers in the professional pilot training programs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 13% industry growth for the aviation industry by 2030, further highlighting the extreme need for pilots.
Unlike traditional lenders that rely solely on FICO scores, and other financial records to determine whether to lend to an individual. the Meritize platform considers the full depth of an individual’s academic or military achievements to enhance credit evaluation and potentially improve loan options.
Because the new financing option considers previous academic or military experiences, merit-based financing may provide a significant source of financial and credit assistance for students who are self-financing their pilot certificates.

“We are thrilled to have additional financing options for our student pilots. This is a great step towards resolving the broadcasted pilot shortage that our world is experiencing.” -Courtney Massey, Director of Business Development, Leading Edge Flight Academy

Contact Leading Edge Flight Academy Admissions, launch@flybend.com/541.383.8825 for more information about this financing option.
For over a decade Leading Edge Flight Academy has specialized in training helicopter pilots, airplane pilots, and launching aviation careers. Leading Edge’s start-to-finish support and above industry standard training prepares students to meet their aviation goals. With a management team of pilots – with over 37,000 cumulative hours and 100+ years in the industry – Leading Edge knows what it takes to prepare students for a career in aviation.