Four flying scholarships worth £7,500 each are open to young people in the United Kingdom who want to earn a private pilot licence. The Worshipful Company of Coachmakers and Coach Harness Makers, a City of London livery company, offers them together with the Leatherland Flying Training Trust: £30,000 in total, for applicants aged 17 to 30 who want to learn to fly for pleasure at a flying club in England or Wales1. Applications are open until midnight on 31 January 2027 and no flying experience is needed1. Next to the four PPL awards, the Coachmakers also offer a scholarship of up to £10,000 to learn to fly in a de Havilland Tiger Moth2. Below you find what the scholarships cover, who can apply, the key dates, and an overview of other well-known flying scholarships for young pilots in the UK and North America.

Who is behind the scholarships

The Coachmakers received its royal charter from King Charles II in 16773. Today the livery company raises and distributes charitable funds to help young people start careers, mainly in the aerospace, automotive and coachmaking industries1. Its Aerospace Awards Committee, made up of members with experience in the aerospace industry and in military, civil and private flying, runs the selection and the interviews4. The four flying scholarships are funded together with the Leatherland Flying Training Trust, set up to manage the legacy of Derek Leatherland, a prolific aviator and supporter of general aviation, airfields and flying clubs1.

What a Leatherland scholarship covers

Each of the four scholarships is worth £7,500 and is meant for training towards a full UK or EASA PPL. The scholarship normally funds around half of the cost of the standard hours for the licence; the scholar pays the rest1. The money is paid in stages, to you or directly to your flying school, on receipts or invoices for training already done. Each payment normally covers half of the cost and can go towards flying lessons, ground school, equipment, software, books and exam fees1.

The scholarships are aimed at leisure flying: the Coachmakers and the Leatherland trust want to help young people discover flying for its own sake, and at the same time support flying clubs and smaller airfields1. That is why they cannot be used for a National Private Pilot Licence (NPPL) or for commercial pilot training1. You choose your own flying school in England or Wales; it must hold current UK CAA approval as an Approved Training Organisation1. Every six months the Coachmakers review your progress with you1.

Who can apply

You can apply if you are 17 to 30 years old, live in the UK and are a UK citizen or have unrestricted, permanent rights to live and work in the UK15. Your 30th birthday must fall after 31 August of the year in which the scholarship is awarded5. You should not have received a similar flying bursary before; an Air Cadet scholarship or another scholarship of five hours or less does not count1.

No previous flying experience is required. What the panel looks for is a real interest in aviation, and the Coachmakers advise taking a trial lesson or air experience flight before you apply1. There are no selection tests: according to the Coachmakers, they and the Leatherland trust invest in the person and their development1. Before you start training you need a medical certificate, normally a UK CAA Class 21. During the scholarship you do not follow any other flying training5.

Key dates and how to apply

You apply with the online application form on the Coachmakers website1. Shortlisted candidates are invited to an interview with a small panel of experienced aviation professionals in the south east of England; travel is at your own expense1.

Winners are also invited to the Coachmakers' Aerospace Industry Dinner, held each November in the City of London, where they receive a certificate in the presence of senior executives from the UK and European aerospace industry4.

Up to £10,000 to fly a Tiger Moth

For anyone drawn to vintage aircraft, the Coachmakers also offer the De Havilland Flying Scholarship. It provides up to £10,000 towards a private pilot licence on the DH82A Tiger Moths of the Cambridge Flying Group at Old Warden Airfield, and normally covers most of the cost of the standard training hours2. The award has been made every year since 2014 and is meant to keep classic aircraft engineering and operations alive; it is not intended for commercial pilot training2.

Applications for the 2027 award close at midnight on 30 June 2027. Shortlisted candidates are invited to a selection day at the Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden on 26 September 2027, where after the interview they get a short flight in a Tiger Moth2. You must be over 18 on 1 September 2027, under 35 on 31 August 2028 and resident in the UK, and you should not be in other powered flying training2. Previous flying experience is neither an advantage nor a disadvantage; the panel looks for enthusiasm, potential and commitment2.

Other flying scholarships for young pilots

The Coachmakers awards are part of a wider set of scholarships for young pilots. These are the best known, with the window as published by each organisation.

Air League Flying Scholarships (UK)

The Air League offers powered flying scholarships of 3, 5 or 12 hours with ground school; the 12-hour award aims to take the best candidates solo6. You must be a permanent UK resident, at least 16 on 1 June 2027, want to become a professional pilot and not yet hold a pilot licence, and you need to be an Air League member. Applications open on 1 December 2026 and close at 5pm on 23 March 20277.

Honourable Company of Air Pilots Flying Scholarships (UK)

The Air Pilots offer PPL scholarships of up to 40 hours of flying, scholarships for flight instructors and residential gliding scholarships. PPL applicants must be at least 17, gliding applicants at least 16. Application forms are usually available from late November or early December, and interviews are usually held in April in London8.

Royal Aero Club Trust bursaries (UK)

The Royal Aero Club Trust gives bursaries of up to £500, £750 and £1,000 to help young people progress in an air sport such as flying or gliding. They are for British citizens living in the UK aged 14 to 21 (up to 24 for advanced bursaries) who already fly solo and apply through a member association. The next round runs from 1 November to 31 December 20269.

BWPA Scholarships (UK, for women)

The British Women Pilots' Association awards flying scholarships of £2,500 and ground school scholarships to women who are BWPA members and fly in the UK or the Channel Islands. The 2026 round closed on 30 September 202610.

EAA Flight Training Scholarships (US and Canada)

Through one application you compete for some thirty EAA scholarships, paid directly to your flight school. You must be at least 16 and a citizen or resident of the US or Canada, or eligible to study or work there. The current round is open until 16 December 202611.

EAA Ray Aviation Scholarship (US and Canada)

The Ray scholarship provides up to US$12,000 for flight training to young people aged 16 to 19 for powered training or 15 to 19 for gliders, put forward by their local EAA chapter. Chapters apply from 1 November 2026 to 31 January 202712.

AOPA Flight Training Scholarships (US)

AOPA awards scholarships of US$250 to US$14,000 to its members, including at least 90 scholarships of US$12,000 for high school students aged 16 to 18 who want to earn a private pilot certificate. The autumn round runs from 1 October to 31 December 2026, the spring round from 1 April to 30 June13.

If you are younger, EAA Young Eagles in the US and Canada gives young people aged 8 to 17 a free first flight in a light aircraft, followed by a free student membership and an online learn to fly course14. A Young Eagles flight is also one of the requirements for the Ray scholarship12.

What this means for you

If you live in the UK and have been thinking about a PPL, this is a chance to have around half of your training paid: £7,500 towards your licence, awarded on motivation rather than on test scores. Start now. Book a trial lesson at a flying club near you, check that the club is an approved training organisation, and arrange your Class 2 medical early so you are ready to start at Easter. Our guide to PPL costs, duration and requirements shows what a licence takes, and the Class 2 medical explained tells you what to expect at the medical. You can compare clubs in our list of flight schools in the United Kingdom and get a head start on the theory with the PPL theory question bank.

Is your goal the airline flight deck? Then a PPL scholarship is a strong first step, and the Air League and Air Pilots scholarships are worth adding to your list. How to fund the rest of the route is covered in pilot training costs and financing and in how modular and integrated training work. For the full picture from first lesson to first job, download our free e-book on becoming a pilot.