COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship

About the scholarship

The COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship promotes Canadian pilot development by providing annual scholarships to a student pilot in an ab-initio flight training program. Created to honour one of Canada’s foremost aviators, the scholarship has helped many Canadian pilots get their wings.

COPA’s Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship provides up to $14,000 toward eligible training costs associated with obtaining a Private Pilot License (PPL). (See eligible expenses section below for details)

Apply for the scholarship

See below for eligibility criteria. Applications for the 2025 COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship will open in early 2025.

Make a donation

Interested in contributing to the future of General Aviation? Since the scholarship was first introduced, close to 60 selected candidates have received flight training funding through the generous contributions from friends and family of Neil J. Armstrong, COPA members, and the Canadian General Aviation community. To make a donation and to support a new generation of deserving flyers, please visit the following link:

DONATE TODAY

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Criteria & Conditions

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible Applicants

Applicants must be between the ages of 16 and 21 as of the application deadline.
Applicants must be a citizen or permanent resident of Canada.
Applicants for the Ab-Initio Scholarship must not: at the time of application, been granted any pilot privileges including: Private Pilot’s License, Recreational Pilot License, Ultra Light Pilot Permit or Soaring / Glider License. (Applicants may be the holder of a student pilot permit), and have not completed more than 10 hours of flight training.
Applicants must not have completed more than 10 hours of flight training at the time of application. However, the scholarship selection committee reserves the right to consider exceptions in specific cases, such as when training hours have been accumulated over an extended period or due to other extenuating circumstances.

Ineligible Applicants

Individuals who have been granted any pilot privileges, including, without limitation, a Private Pilots License, Recreational Pilot License, Ultra Light Pilot Permit or a Soaring/Glider License. (Applicants may however be the holder of a student pilot permit).
Applicants may receive other scholarships and bursaries to assist with their flight training, however applicants who have been awarded the Royal Canadian Air Cadet Power Flying Scholarship, or any other programs that result in a Private Pilot License will not be eligible for the COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship.
To ensure that as many aviators can benefit, successful applicants from previous years of this scholarship are not eligible to re-apply.

Recipient Conditions

The winning candidate(s) may select the facility at which the flight training is to be taken, subject to the approval of COPA. The training facility shall be a licensed Flying School or educational institute in Canada with facilities satisfactory to COPA and shall agree to the conditions of the scholarship. COPA will pay the Flight Training Unit directly and may disburse funds to cover instructional materials and other course costs at the beginning of training. The recipient of the COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship will be given a 1-year complimentary COPA membership as part of the award and will need to maintain their membership in good standing for the entirety of the training period.

Winning candidates agree to participate in future COPA promotional activities.

Training shall be completed in a reasonable period of time, usually not longer than one year from commencement. In the event the recipient does not make satisfactory progress or does not conduct himself/herself in a manner consistent with the intention of the award, COPA shall have the right to revoke the award and to cease paying any further costs of training. Progress reports from the training facility will be provided to COPA as required.

Eligible Expenses

Eligible costs of training include the following:

costs of ground school, including books and required materials for the courses;
costs of instructor time and training aircraft;
the direct flight training portion of tuition in programs offered by secondary or post-secondary schools, including colleges and universities.

Costs that are not covered include the following:

Non flight training tuition costs at secondary or post-secondary schools, including colleges and universities. Those seeking assistance with such costs should apply to the Scholarship and bursary programs usually available through those institutions. (E.g., Scholarships cannot be used to pay any part of the tuition of a college or university program where flight training costs are subsidized).
Personal meals or transportation to and from the training facility.
Clothing.
Aviation equipment or supplies which are not required for the program (ex: headsets, flight bags, e-tablets, etc).

Funds will only be disbursed to the flight school, not directly to the recipient, and can only be used to cover training costs incurred after the awarding of the scholarship. Training completed prior to the scholarship award is not eligible for funding.

Payments will be disbursed directly to the flight school based on the following milestones completed by the scholarship recipient:

First Solo Flight: $2,500
Cross Country Flight: two payments of $2,500 each
Solo Cross Country Flight: two payments of $2,500 each
Private Pilot License (PPL) Completion: $1,500

Any funds remaining at the conclusion of training or should the recipient not complete their training within 12 months of the award will be reinvested in COPA’s Flight Safety Foundation for future scholarship awards.

Past Recipients

2023

David He, Burnaby, B.C., COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship

2022

Savannah Albrecht, Whistler, B.C., COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship

2021

Emilie Perron, North Bay, Ontario, COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship
Mark Pua, Greater Vancouver Region, B.C., COPA Neil J. Armstrong Advanced Scholarship

2020

Brock Csada, Regina, Saskatchewan, COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship
Maxwell Riemers, Stoney Creek, Ontario, COPA Neil J. Armstrong Advanced Scholarship

2019

David Wentland, Bowmanville, Ontario, COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship
Larissa Chiu, Vancouver, B.C., COPA Neil J. Armstrong Advanced Scholarship

2018

Erik Yaremkewich, Squamish, B.C., COPA Neil J. Armstrong Ab-Initio Scholarship
Cody Lincoln, Seven Sisters, Manitoba, COPA Neil J. Armstrong Advanced Scholarship
Erik Urquhart, Vernon, B.C., COPA Neil J. Armstrong Advanced Scholarship