TCU celebrated the launch of its new professional aviation degree program on Tuesday with an event that featured airline executives, an F-18 flyover and a message about workforce demand in one of the country's busiest aviation corridors. About two dozen TCU aviation students attended the gathering in Fort Worth, where leaders from American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport discussed what it takes to build a career in the industry.
The event, called Aviation's Next Horizon, marked the formal celebration of TCU's Bachelor of Science in Professional Aviation, according to TCU's College of Education. The degree includes concentrations in Aviation Administration and Professional Pilot, along with a new Aviation Studies minor. The Aviation Administration concentration launched this fall and is designed to prepare students for leadership and management roles with airlines, airports and other aviation organizations, per the same source.
TCU anticipates launching the Professional Pilot concentration in fall 2027, which the college says will provide a structured pathway toward flight training and FAA certification. Coursework in the broader program covers aviation safety, airport operations and decision-making. As Fort Worth Report noted, TCU Provost Floyd Wormley Jr. said Fort Worth's standing as one of the country's leading aerospace hubs gives the university access to industry expertise, potential partnerships and opportunities, and an opening to educate professionals who will go on to lead the industry.
A Student's Path From Congo to Campus
Among the students at the event was Anastasia Kalulika, who was born in Congo and raised in South Africa before taking her first flight to the United States at age 17, according to Fort Worth Report. Kalulika, now a TCU aviation student, said she once thought her only option in the field was becoming a flight attendant but now wants to work in airport management and is considering a business minor to go with her degree.
TCU's Bachelor of Science in Professional Aviation is housed within the university's College of Education and was approved by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges as of May 18, 2026, according to a TCU announcement. The Aviation Studies minor, which also launched this fall, includes coursework in safety, operations and industry decision-making and offers students the opportunity to earn a Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate, the university said.
Industry Leaders Talk Workforce and Technology
The panel featured José Freig, American Airlines' vice president for business operations; Grant Morris, Southwest Airlines' vice president of flight operations; and Chris McLaughlin, CEO of Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, according to Fort Worth Report. The three executives said the industry's continued growth depends on finding workers who combine technical skill with a commitment to serving people.
Freig said that whether employees serve customers directly or support someone who does, their work matters, and noted that some of the most useful aviation technologies save fuel or improve airport operations without customers ever seeing them happen. Morris told the group that employers need curious, motivated people who genuinely enjoy the work, and he said he wants his team to creatively analyze data to anticipate aircraft and pilot performance in ways that improve safety and efficiency. He said he has encouraged his team to keep asking questions, even when they think they already know the answer.
McLaughlin said DFW Airport is already using artificial intelligence to improve heating and cooling maintenance, even as the airport faces pressure from retiring tradespeople. He said he wants to build an internal team of data scientists and engineers to help grow the airport, and that solving the airport's challenges starts with taking care of employees, customers and community members.
American Airlines' Economic Footprint in North Texas
A TCU study estimated that American Airlines' DFW hub supports about $70 billion in annual economic output and roughly 350,000 jobs across North Texas, according to a separate TCU report. American Airlines CEO Robert Isom, speaking about the scale of that reach, said the airline serves about 700,000 customers daily and described it as “a people-serving-people business.”
That scale fits within a broader regional pattern. The Dallas-Fort Worth region is home to more than 700 aviation and aerospace companies employing over 100,000 people, with roughly two-thirds of those workers based in the DFW area, according to the Dallas Economic Development Corporation. North Texas accounts for 10% of all aerospace manufacturing jobs nationwide and 6% of the country's aircraft manufacturers, the group reported.
Technology Reshaping Airport Operations
DFW Airport has been expanding its use of artificial intelligence beyond maintenance work. The airport created a full-time principal AI lead position to serve as its airport-wide strategic and technical authority and guide the safe, ethical adoption of the technology, according to Dallas Innovates. The airport has set a goal of achieving more than a 20% efficiency gain in operations and maintenance over the next five years, and a 2026 survey ranked AI automation 11th among the top 25 trends expected to affect airports over the next three to five years.
Looking further ahead, DFW Airport officials have discussed introducing electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, or eVTOLs, for air taxis and short- to medium-range cargo flights, according to the Fort Worth Report's earlier coverage of the airport's tech plans. Airport officials have said they anticipate the first operational flights could come in 2028-29.
A Regional Pipeline Already in Place
TCU's new program joins an existing regional training pipeline for aspiring pilots. Tarrant County College offers its own Professional Pilot program at Alliance Airport in Fort Worth through partnerships with ATP Flight School and Veracity Aviation, following an FAA Part 141-approved flight training curriculum, according to Tarrant County College. TCC offers both fixed-wing and rotor-wing tracks, and students can complete its Associate of Applied Science program in two years through day or night classes, though the college notes its Professional Pilot program typically carries a waitlist of about a year and that flight-related fees are the program's biggest expense.
Back at TCU's launch event, the celebration carried a distinctly Fort Worth flourish: Mayor Mattie Parker shook an attendee's hand during the panel, and an F-18 performed a flyover overhead, according to Fort Worth Report. For students like Kalulika, the moment underscored a broader message from the panel — that an industry built around machines and data still runs, ultimately, on people.
