Milka Isingizwe, one of the students training there
In a quiet corner of Ohio, thousands of miles from the hills of East Africa, a new chapter in global aviation training is taking flight.
Kent State University’s College of Aeronautics and Engineering has partnered with Rwanda to help train the next generation of pilots for one of Africa’s most ambitious aviation hubs.
As reporter Clay Lepard explained in a recent News 5 Cleveland segment, Kent State has long trained pilots and aviation professionals who go on to fly for major airlines around the world.
Now, that expertise is reaching across continents.
Dreams Taking Flight
For students like Milka Isingizwe, the journey to Kent State spanned three flights and more than 8,000 miles.
“I’m so grateful. First, I can’t believe I’m doing this because it has been a dream since I was a child,” she said.
Isingizwe is one of five Rwandan students selected from more than 2,600 applicants to train as pilots under the new partnership.
Rwanda, a country about the size of Massachusetts but home to roughly twice as many people, is investing heavily in its aviation future.
Mo McFarland, Associate Dean of Kent State’s College of Aeronautics and Engineering, said the country’s vision is to become “the hub for sub-Saharan and Central Africa.”
The Infrastructure Gap
Rwanda still faces significant challenges in developing aviation skills locally. McFarland said many African countries lack the flight training infrastructure available in the United States.
“They don’t have the training infrastructure that we have in the United States,” he said.
He added that Africa will need tens of thousands of new pilots over the next two decades as air travel expands.
Boeing’s latest long-term market outlook projects the continent will require about 23,000 new pilots during that period.
The Kent State partnership forms part of Rwanda’s broader effort to build local aviation expertise.
RwandAir continues to employ both Rwandan and expatriate pilots, while the government has expanded cadet programmes to increase the number of locally trained flight crews.
Airports, Fleets and Skills
Francis Shaka, another of the Rwandan students
The pilot training programme is one element of Rwanda’s wider aviation strategy.
The country is developing Bugesera International Airport, which is expected to substantially increase passenger capacity when it opens.
RwandAir is also pursuing plans to expand its fleet and route network, while the Centre of Excellence for Aviation Skills (CEAS), is expected to strengthen Rwanda’s ability to train pilots and other aviation professionals locally.
The new Centre, opening around 2028, plans to train 70–80 pilots annually – plus maintenance technicians, cabin crew, air traffic control, and others, with total enrolment up to 500 students per year.
Kent State has also announced plans to establish a campus in Rwanda, offering programmes including fashion design and merchandising, further expanding educational cooperation between the two countries.
Back in Ohio, the programme has already celebrated an important milestone. Francis Shaka became the first Rwandan cadet to complete a solo flight.
“I just made it to the runway, flared up, and made my landing. And I was amazed. And I’m very happy,” he said.
Asked how long he expected to keep smiling, he laughed: “I think forever.”
For Rwanda, the partnership is about more than training a handful of pilots. It is part of a long-term strategy to build the skilled workforce needed to support a growing aviation sector and strengthen the country’s ambition of becoming a regional aviation hub.
Rwanda is proactively building capacity – from ~20 to 70–80 pilots trained per year, to meet its hub ambitions.
