The Pathway Record

How it works

Fill in the basics

Campus, start date, where you ended up and a few sentences. Add detail only if you want to.

Send it by email

Your answers open in a ready-to-send email. Attach any contracts or records you still have.

It gets cross-checked

Each account is compared with others and with public sources, then summarized without names.

What's already on public record

2022

LIFT's Facebook page told prospects they could earn all of their flight ratings in as little as 12 months. By 2025 its own posts described the program as taking about 18 months on average.facebook.com/FlyWithLIFT

Jul 2023

LIFT announced over $99,000 in tuition incentives. Up to $80,000 of that was a captain upgrade bonus, paid only if the graduate made captain at Republic by a target date: 42 months from start in Myrtle Beach, 48 in Indianapolis.Halldale, Jul 26 2023

Sep 2024

LIFT's director of operations told a trade publication that about half of the students who enter the program complete it.Halldale, Sep 11 2024

What's missing is everything in between: how long each phase really took, what students borrowed, how the incentives played out and where people ended up. That's what this record is for.

Who's running this and how it's used

This project is run by a former LIFT Academy student who is working through their own loan and contract questions.

Submissions are read only by the person running this project. Patterns may be published in summary form, and with your permission, your anonymized account may be included in complaints to regulators such as the CFPB or a state attorney general. Your name is never shared unless you check the box that says it can be.

How the record is checked

The point is to compare what students can show against what was advertised, not to collect opinions. Every submission is cross-referenced with the others and with public sources: LIFT and Republic announcements, court filings, lender terms and FAA records.

Answers backed by a document carry the most weight. Accounts from memory are still kept and still useful when they line up with other people's, but they're labeled that way. Good outcomes are recorded the same as bad ones.

Add your record

The basics take about a minute. Everything past the first checkbox is optional. Stick to what you know firsthand, and if a date or number is a guess, just say so.

About you

Name Optional Best way to reach you Optional, for follow-up questions

The basics

Campus Start month Experience when you started Where things ended up

Where you are now What happened, in a few sentences Focus on things you could point to: dates, what you signed, what you were told and by whom (a role is fine, no names needed). Mark anything you're unsure of.

Add more detail (optional, 2 minutes)

Timeline

Month you finished each phase. Leave blank if you didn't reach it.

Private Instrument Commercial CFI / CFII / MEI Last day in the program If you left before graduating Instructors you had

Flights lost to maintenance or simulator problems

Money

Lender Total borrowed Ballpark is fine

How the loan money went to the school

Contracts and incentives

Did you sign the captain upgrade bonus agreement? Were you offered a replacement or revised contract later? If yes, what changed and when was it offered? For example: what the bonus became, and whether it was before your Republic class date

What can you back this up with?

Check everything you still have, even if you aren't sending it.

Training record Enrollment agreement or exhibits Loan statements Revised or replacement contract FAA certificates or IACRA Emails or texts from the school Screenshots of ads or recruiting material Memory only, for now

Don't have your training record?

Federal rules (14 CFR 141.101) require a Part 141 school to give a student a copy of their training record on request. Schools only have to keep it for 1 year after you leave, so ask soon. Copy this and send it to the school's records or student services office:

I am a former student and am requesting a complete copy of my student training record under 14 CFR 141.101(e), including all stage checks, end-of-course tests and instructor notes. Please send it to this email address. Thank you.

Documents help the most. Enrollment agreements, Exhibit pages, training records, loan disbursement statements and any revised contracts. If you have them, attach them to the email in the next step. Black out Social Security numbers, account numbers and dates of birth first.

Permission

I agree that my account can be used in this case study and summarized in complaints to regulators, with my name removed. My name can be used too. It's okay to contact me with follow-up questions.

Almost done: send it

Tap the button and your answers open in a ready-to-send email. Attach any documents, then hit send. Your full summary is also copied when you tap, so if anything looks cut off, just paste it into the email.

Open my email

Email didn't open? Copy the address and summary instead.