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FEATURES
Jones Family Foundation Gift Clark said. “In addition to the fuel flowage fees and
Expands Flight Training in Macon other revenue streams the aircraft will generate, the
future aviators who will be flying them and the faculty
Prof. Chris Tsavatewa members and flight instructors supporting them will
be living, working, and shopping right here in Macon.”
Middle Georgia State University’s flight educa-
tion program at the Macon Downtown Airport has re- Jones said the gift reflects the desire of his late
ceived two additional airplanes thanks to the gener- father, Charles H. Jones, to give back to the commu-
osity of the Charles H. Jones Family Foundation. nities he served as a civic leader and successful busi-
nessman and to help grow aviation as an economic
The foundation’s $800,000 gift will allow MGA to driver in the region. “My father and our Foundation
purchase two single-engine Piper Archers, as well as founder, Charles Jones, was a navigator for the U.S.
two replacement engines, and put them into service Navy Air Transport Command during WWII; he was
in spring 2020. The new aircraft will allow twice as an early adopter of general aviation for business,”
many student pilots to pursue their flight education said Jones, himself a longtime general-aviation pilot.
bachelor’s degree program at Macon Downtown Air- “Most of us take for granted the long and rich history
port, increasing the number of MGA aviation students of aviation in Middle Georgia, be it the founding of
at the facility from 60 to 120. Delta Airlines in Macon or the existence of the larg-
est industrial complex in our state, Warner Robins Air
With agreements in place with several regional and Logistics Center. Our aviation workforce is second to
national air carriers, the University’s flight students none, and it is high time that we emphasize MGA’s su-
graduate with pathways into high-demand, high-pay- perior ability to produce highly qualified pilots to help
ing jobs in Georgia’s fastest-growing industry. MGA fill a growing need for pilots in the industry.”
president Dr. Christopher Blake announced the gift
earlier this summer at a meeting of the Macon-Bibb MGA is the only public university in Georgia with
Commission. With him was Adon Clark, dean of MGA’s a school of aviation, based in Eastman, which offers
School of Aviation; Ken Fincher, vice president for ad- degrees in aviation science and management with
vancement at MGA; and Dwight Jones, chairman and concentrations in flight and air traffic management as
president of the Jones Family Foundation. Jones also well as degrees in aviation maintenance and structural
serves as vice chair for the Macon-Bibb County Indus- technology. The School of Aviation also offers flight
trial Authority and vice chair of the Museum of Avia- education at satellite locations, including the Macon
tion in Warner Robins. Downtown Airport and Cook County Airport in Adel.
Aviation students in Macon are pursuing the Univer-
“These new planes will not only provide Ma- sity’s flight education bachelor’s degree program and
con-Bibb residents with additional opportunities to several levels of FAA pilot certification. MGA will host
start working towards fulfilling and lucrative careers a ceremony at the Macon Downtown Airport when
in aviation, but they also will bring in revenue, both di- the new planes arrive in spring 2020.
rectly to the airport, and indirectly to the community,”
Academic Affairs Annual Report 2019 | Middle Georgia State University 5
