Home to the most advanced flight curriculum of any university in the world, Embry-Riddle is proud to offer comprehensive, quality instruction to the aviators of tomorrow.
At both the Daytona Beach and Prescott campuses, students have access to modern aircraft, advanced avionics and high-fidelity simulations featuring virtual reality.
These tools are backed by expert instruction and world-class facilities designed with a singular focus on safety, professionalism and excellence.
With our state-of-the-art simulators, a modern fleet and dedicated flight instructors, students build the skill, confidence and decision-making ability required to thrive in today’s aviation landscape.
Cleared Direct to the Flight Deck
Airlines are seeking new talent, and they know they can count on Embry-Riddle graduates. Unique partnerships with regional and national airlines provide our students with a direct route to the flight deck.
Eagles have secured conditional job offers as early as their sophomore or junior year thanks to hiring agreements with SkyWest Airlines, Delta Airlines, United Airlines and others.
It's What We're Known For
Embry-Riddle is renowned for rigorous programs that include comprehensive flight training, equipping students with the expertise needed to succeed in commercial, corporate and military aviation fields.
325+
Average number of flying days (both campuses)
$198k
median salary of airline & commercial pilots
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024
660K
projected global need for new airline pilots over the next 20 years
We operate one of the largest university-owned training fleets in the world — comparable in size to a regional airline. Every aircraft is FAA-certified, regularly maintained and built for high-volume flight training.
Regardless of which campus you choose, every primary training aircraft in our fleet meets the same standards — the same ones the industry expects of our graduates. Garmin G1000 glass cockpits. ADS-B traffic and weather. Full FAA Technically Advanced Aircraft designation.
Aircraft Fleet at Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach
One of the busiest flight training operations in the country. With nearly 400 training flights departing and arriving every day from our on-campus Flight Line at Daytona Beach International Airport, the pace here mirrors the tempo of a working airline.
Students have access to a Flight Operations Center with a state-of-the-art dispatch desk, real-time weather monitoring, flight planning stations and private oral rooms. All ramp activity is monitored by full-time flight supervisors from our on-campus Flight Supervisor Tower.
Your flight training begins here. The Cessna 172 is the most produced training aircraft in aviation history — and the reason is simple: it works. Stable, durable and forgiving, the Skyhawk builds the foundational skills you'll carry through your entire career. Our fleet logs tens of thousands of flight hours every year.
180-horsepower engine with proven durability under high training volumes
Multi-Engine Trainer | Multi-Engine, Advanced Commercial, MEI
One of the most technically advanced light-twin aircraft flying today. The DA42-VI combines an all-composite airframe with Austro jet fuel piston engines and a full Garmin G1000 glass cockpit. Our fleet is further upgraded with ADS-B and an enhanced landing-gear warning system.
Austro AE3t00 engines — approximately 40% more fuel-efficient than conventional twins
Garmin G1000 glass cockpit with ADS-B traffic and weather
All-composite airframe construction
Enhanced landing-gear warning system
Aircraft Fleet at Embry-Riddle Prescott
Prescott offers something no flat-terrain flight school can replicate: a real mountain flying environment from day one. At 5,045 feet elevation and surrounded by terrain, density altitude, mountain weather and complex airspace aren't edge cases — they're part of the standard curriculum.
Students gain experience with density altitude effects, mountain terrain operations and high-elevation procedures from their very first flights — conditions that sharpen pilot decision-making in ways that lower-altitude training cannot replicate.
The same proven platform as Daytona Beach — with one significant difference: the environment. At Prescott, density altitude effects, mountain terrain and high-elevation operations are part of every flight. Paired with Frasca C172S TruFlite and Paradigm AATDs for complete sim-to-aircraft continuity.
Garmin G1000 glass cockpit with ADS-B traffic and weather
High-altitude and mountain flying environment from day one
Density altitude and terrain exposure built into standard training
Golden Eagles Flight Team | NIFA SAFECON competitions
The Prescott Golden Eagles Flight Team competes in National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA) SAFECON events, testing precision flying, navigation and airmanship against top university programs nationwide. These dedicated competition aircraft are separate from the standard curriculum fleet. Flight team membership is open to all Prescott flight students.
Two-seat, single-engine — ideal for precision competitive events
Dedicated competition aircraft, separate from curriculum fleet
A pathway to competitive aviation experience beyond the classroom
Multi-Engine Trainer | Multi-Engine and advanced flight training
The "Next Generation" evolution of the DA42 platform. Adds Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) and Garmin Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT) — a 3D perspective view of terrain, runways and obstacles that's especially valuable in mountain flying. External oxygen systems support high-altitude operations training unique to Prescott.
FADEC — Full Authority Digital Engine Control for optimal engine management
Garmin G1000 with ADS-B and Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT)
External supplemental oxygen for high-altitude training
Austro AE300 turbocharged diesel engines, 168 hp each
Prescott Exclusive | Upset Recovery Training
Most pilots will never intentionally enter a spin. But every pilot should know how to get out of one. The Super Decathlon is a fully aerobatic aircraft used exclusively for our optional Upset Recovery Training. Students learn spin entry and recovery, unusual attitude recognition, basic aerobatics and emergency maneuvers in a controlled, instructor-led environment.
Fully aerobatic — certified for spins, rolls and unusual attitude recovery
180-horsepower engine with robust construction for repetitive aerobatic use
Optional add-on open to all Prescott flight students
Not available at any other ERAU campus
Eagles Are Champions
Our flight teams have won the NIFA SAFECON national championship 17 times since 1992 and have an unbroken 38-year record as regional champions, with the Prescott Campus team recently winning the 2025 national championship.
We believe to fly like a professional, you must train like a professional. Our simulation facilities don't supplement flight training — they sharpen it.
Every Embry-Riddle simulator is FAA-certified, matched to the aircraft you fly and operated by instructors who push you further than the aircraft alone can.
To ensure composure and excellence, students utilize Embry-Riddle’s state-of-the-art flight simulators – more than 260 across both campuses – which provide a controlled environment to navigate the newness of flight. This foundation ensures you're ready to soar in one of our training aircraft.
Level Up Your Skills
Our simulator equipment features innovative visual graphic generation, control loading technology to make it feel more like an airplane and environmental controls that include elements such as smoke generation devices to realistically simulate emergency events.
Advanced Flight Simulation Center
One of the most comprehensive collegiate simulation facilities in the country. No other university flight program offers a multimillion-dollar distributed simulation network at this scale — and it shows in the pilots we produce.
Our network of Frasca Level 6 FTDs can be operated as a connected system. Instructors can run group training exercises across all devices simultaneously, with students communicating and observing each other in real time.
FAA Qualified Level-D | Airline Transport Pilot Certificate Training Program (ATP/CTP) | Regional Jet Training
Level-D is the highest qualification the FAA issues for flight simulators. It's the same standard used to qualify airline pilots for type ratings — and the same hardware leading regional airlines use to train their crews. At Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach, it's available to undergraduate students. This level D simulator supports the ERAU Airline Transport Pilot Certificate Training Program and allows ERAU to provide this important training program to enrolled students. No other university in the United States can say that.
FAA Level-D qualified — the highest possible simulator qualification
Six-axis hydraulic motion platform — six degrees of freedom
180-degree Vital VIII Visual Image Generation System with near-3D visuals
Full CRJ-200 cockpit: EFIS, EICAS and Flight Management System (FMS)
Hydraulic control loading and digital engine sound replication
Built by Flight Safety International — the same manufacturer airlines use
FAA Qualified Level-6. Regional Jet Training
The Level 6 CRJ-200 FTD supports up to four (4) hours of the required ten (10) hours of simulation time in the Airline Transport Pilot Certificate Training Program (ATP/CTP).
FAA Level-6 qualified modeled against aircraft specific data
Fixed Base (no motion)
180-degree FVS-200-TX Visual Image Generation System with near-3D visuals
Full CRJ-200 cockpit: EFIS, EICAS, and Flight Management System (FMS)
Electric control loading and digital engine sound replication
Built by Frasca International – a Flight Safety International Company
FAA Level 5 FTD | Multi-engine commercial training
These Frasca Level 5 FTDs replicate the Diamond DA42-VI — same look, same feel, same sounds as the actual aircraft. Students practice multi-engine and single-engine-out scenarios, instrument approaches in weather and system failures before performing them in the actual airplane.
FAA Level 5 certified qualified
Garmin G1000NXi cockpit matching the DA42-VI fleet
220-degree panoramic visual display with RSi XT-6 Image Generators
Collimation technology for 3D depth perception
Full multi-engine and single-engine-out scenario capability
Level 6 is one of the highest FAA qualifications for a Flight Training Device. What sets ours apart: panoramic visual theaters most Level 6 devices don't have. Frasca's 220-degree TruVision™ display wraps around the cockpit with satellite-based terrain and a full airport database. Ten networked devices allow group training across simulators in real time.
FAA Level 6 certified — highest FTD qualification required to precisely mimic the real aircraft
Frasca 220-degree TruVision™ panoramic visual display with satellite terrain
Garmin G1000 glass cockpit matching the C172 fleet exactly
Full scenario capability: weather, traffic, ATC, failures, emergencies
Networked fleet mode for group and mission training
Central Console and Debriefing Stations for instructor-led review
Our Robertson Flight Simulation Center gives Prescott students access to industry-respected training devices configured specifically for mountain flying and high-altitude operations — conditions that define the Prescott environment.
All devices are FAA-certified with active Letters of Approval. The Frasca Simplicity instructor station on both TruFlite devices integrates with iPad ForeFlight for seamless scenario setup and debrief.
Among the most immersive single‑engine training devices available, the Frasca C172S TruFlite provides a highly realistic simulation experience. A three‑projector wrap‑around visual system with 5,000‑lumen laser hybrid projectors places students inside a convincing virtual flight environment. Advanced 3‑axis control loading with force feedback reproduces authentic aircraft control feel.
Four of these devices are equipped with full motion, featuring 15 inches of travel and 6 degrees of freedom. These full‑motion systems accurately replicate aircraft movement both on the ground and in flight, significantly enhancing realism and training transfer.
All models feature Garmin G1000 NXi avionics
Three‑projector wrap‑around visual system (5,000‑lumen projectors)
Three Paradigm C172 AATDs provide supplemental single‑engine simulation capacity. These devices feature Garmin G1000 cockpits and Paradigm’s wrap‑around panoramic visual displays, closely matched to ERAU’s Cessna 172 Skyhawk fleet. They are used for procedure practice, instrument training, and scenario‑based learning.
Garmin G1000 glass cockpit matching the C172 fleet
Paradigm wrap‑around panoramic visual display
Full scenario replication, including weather, traffic, ATC, and emergency situations
Widely regarded as one of the premier multi‑engine advanced aviation training devices, the Frasca DA42‑VI TruFlite was upgraded in 2024. Before flying the actual DA42NG, students build proficiency in this simulator by learning aircraft systems, practicing engine‑out procedures, and completing complex emergency scenarios.
The full‑motion device provides 15 inches of motion travel with 6 degrees of freedom, offering deep immersion and realistic aircraft response. Training performed in this device directly translates to the aircraft.
Garmin G1000 NXi cockpit replicating the DA42‑VI
The Frasca C172S RTDs feature the same Garmin G1000 NXi avionics found in the larger simulators, offering a streamlined single‑engine training option at a lower cost. These devices provide core procedural and instrument training while improving accessibility for students.
Key Features
Garmin G1000 NXi avionics
Three‑channel TV screen visual system
FAA AATD certification
Reduced training cost for students
Dedicated Crosswind Trainer · Available to All Active Flight Students
Crosswind landings require precision, and Prescott’s operational environment provides frequent real‑world crosswind conditions. The Redbird Xwind SE offers a safe, repeatable platform for students to build crosswind landing proficiency before applying those skills in the aircraft.
The device is available for independent use by any student currently enrolled in a flight course.
The Redbird C172 TD2 BATDs replicate the Garmin G1000 avionics used in ERAU’s C172 training aircraft. Students begin training with an instructor, then may use the devices independently to practice takeoffs, landings, and other required flight maneuvers.
These BATDs are available free of charge to students whenever the flight line is open.
Garmin G1000 avionics
Three‑screen immersive display
Free access for student practice
The United Aviate program has helped me streamline my educational and career goals by providing a direct pathway to the United flight deck, giving me resources I didn’t know were out there and connecting me with industry leaders and the United family."
