Federal student loans can now pay for flight training starting 2027.
H.R. 9896 — WINGS Act of 2026 · Filed by Joyce Beatty (D-OH) · 9 cosponsors · Introduced Jul 23, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill lets students use federal student loans for aviation training. The training includes flight hours, simulator time, tests, and equipment. Students in aviation degree programs can borrow more money. The change starts in the 2027–2028 school year.
Who it affects
Students in aviation programs can borrow more federal money for flight training. Flight schools and training companies may see more students. The bill does not promise jobs after training.
One thing to notice
The bill does not set limits on how much schools can charge. Schools could raise prices because students can now borrow more money.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
9 cosponsors: 5 Democrats, 4 Republicans.
- Jul 23, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jul 23, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Words to know
- federal student loans — Money the government lends to students to pay for college or training.
- aviation training — Classes and practice to learn to fly planes and earn pilot licenses.
- simulator — A machine that copies how a plane flies so pilots can practice safely.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (2,493 characters) on Aug 12, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,707 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-23.
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