Bill Would Affect VA Aviation Training Benefits

Aviation groups say a proposed new bill will essentially block military veterans from using their Veterans Administration benefits to obtain aviation degrees. The new measure would cap the VA benefits at $20,235 per year for flight training, a fraction of the cost of the programs that form the basis of degree aviation programs. The provision was rolled into a bill (H.R. 475) by the House Veterans' Affairs Committee on Thursday. There is still a long legislative process ahead of the measure and aviation groups, led by Helicopter Association International (HAI), are urging opposition (PDF) to the proposal. "HAI believes the real work needs to be done by flight schools, veterans, and other members of the aviation community who need to pressure Congress to treat fairly vets who want a career in aviation," HAI said in a news release.

The bill apparently has its roots in some cases of abuse in which the VA paid out hundreds of thousands of dollars for some beneficiaries. HAI claims those were isolated incidents that should have been dealt with internally. "Had the agency been enforcing its own regulations, the instances where the VA paid out amounts in the mid-six figures for a few students would not have occurred," the organization said.