Open Journal of Applied Sciences, 2017, 7, 196-205 http://www.scirp.org/journal/ojapps ISSN Online: 2165-3925 ISSN Print: 2165-3917 DOI: 10.4236/ojapps.2017.74017 April 30, 2017 The History of Aviation Education and Training Jorge M. M. Barata, Fernando M. S. P. Neves Aerospace Sciences Department, Universidade da Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal Abstract Aviation education and training began early in the 20th century just after the first successful powered flight of the Wright brothers. In the present paper, the types of aviation education and training around the world are reviewed. Its developments were distinct in many different countries, and in some cases evolved from the military needs while in others from the dedication of a few enthusiasts. In the 21st century aeronautical and aerospace engineering is taught at the most advanced engineering schools in the world providing skills and competences that integrate advanced disciplines. Keywords Aviation History, Education 1. Introduction Aviation Education and Training as an individual area began soon after the first successful powered flights early in the twentieth century. However, it should be pointed out that the Wright Brothers controlled flight in a heavier-than-air ma- chine (Figure 1) would not be possible without the previous studies and expe- riments of others before them like Sir George Cayley, Otto Lilienthal, or Samuel Langley. In most cases, aviation education and training was an evolution of a well-established military command like in the United States, United Kingdom or Portugal. The military branch that took the first steps depending on the tradition of each specific country, and in some cases like United Kingdom and Portugal it was the Navy. Also, much scientific knowledge necessary to navigate was at that time an adaptation from the nautical methods to aviation [1] [2]. Training ap- peared in the first place as a consequence of the World War I and then World War II, and the necessity to prepare a significant number of pilots. The aero- space/aeronautical engineering studies appeared two decades after the Wright Brothers flight. Most detailed information on Aerospace Engineering education in the United States can be found in reference [3] that collects the history of How to cite this paper: Barata, J.M.M. and Neves, F.M.S.P. (2017) The History of Aviation Education and Training. Open Journal of Applied Sciences, 7, 196-205. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojapps.2017.74017 Received: March 10, 2017 Accepted: April 27, 2017 Published: April 30, 2017 Copyright © 2017 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Open Access