VerifiedMost aviation careers in South Africa are not taught at a university. Air traffic controllers are trained by the state air navigation company at its own academy. Pilots train at flying schools. The regulator funds the technical skills it needs to regulate. Only aeronautical engineering runs through a university degree.
That changes what you apply for. In this field the bursary and the job are usually the same application.
The South African Civil Aviation Authority closes its bursary on 30 September at midnight each year, so it is open as this page is written on 23 September 2026.
ATNS bursary programme
Air Traffic and Navigation Services is the state-owned company that runs South African airspace. Its bursary programme is the largest single entry route into aviation in the country, and it is a training contract rather than a study grant.
The ATNS bursary runs in five streams:
- Air Traffic Services Officer. The controller stream, and the largest.
- Aeronautical Information Management Officer. Processing and distributing the aeronautical information aircraft navigate by.
- Target Generating Officer.
- Airport Management Centre Liaison Officer.
- Simulator Support Officer.
Bursars study at the ATNS Aviation Training Academy at Bonaero Park in Johannesburg, near OR Tambo. The bursary includes shared accommodation at a guest lodge arranged by the academy and transport to and from it for study and practical work.
The 2026 round offered 117 bursaries across the five streams and closed on 28 February 2026. ATNS runs four intakes in a financial year, so the closing date is not the only entry point — watch the ATNS recruitment portal rather than waiting for one annual advert.
SACAA bursary
The South African Civil Aviation Authority is the safety regulator. It funds the disciplines it employs, which means aeronautical and other engineering, aviation management and the technical inspection skills behind safety oversight.
Its date is fixed rather than announced: it closes on 30 September at midnight every year. That makes it one of the few aviation schemes you can diarise.
TETA
The Transport Education and Training Authority funds aviation qualifications directly, including the commercial pilot licence, and it is the only significant public funder of pilot training.
Its unemployed bursary is open to South African citizens aged 18 to 35 who are unemployed, studying at a public university, university of technology, TVET college or an accredited flying school, towards a qualification at NQF level 6 or above, with at least a 50% average in the previous year and a household income under R350 000 a year.
TETA disqualifies an applicant who submits more than one application: the rule is one application per qualification, and applying for two voids both. Missing documents also cause automatic disqualification. Confirmed on the TETA unemployed bursaries page. Its recent rounds have closed in late September.
Aeronautical engineering
This is the one aviation field that runs through a normal university degree, and it is funded accordingly.
The KwaZulu-Natal EDTEA bursary is worth knowing about because its name misleads people. It is run by the provincial Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, but it funds aeronautical engineering students rather than tourism or environmental ones.
The Moses Kotane Institute funds aviation within its KwaZulu-Natal skills mandate, and Royal HaskoningDHV funds the engineering disciplines behind airport infrastructure. For the wider engineering funders, see our engineering bursaries page.
Graduate programmes
FlySafair graduate internships place graduates inside an operating airline, across commercial, technical and operations functions. This is not a bursary and it does not pay for study, but for an aviation-minded graduate it is one of the few structured ways into the industry.
The Sakhikamva Foundation runs aviation outreach and has offered bursaries in the past. Its most recent listing was for 2024, so treat it as dormant and check the foundation directly.
Training as a pilot
A commercial pilot licence is not a degree and NSFAS does not fund it. The realistic routes are:
- A TETA unemployed bursary at an accredited flying school, which is the main public route.
- An airline cadet programme, advertised by the airline when it needs pilots rather than annually.
- The South African Air Force, which trains pilots under a military service obligation.
- Self-funding or a study loan, which is what most private pilots do.
Before paying anything, check that the flying school is accredited by the SACAA. An unaccredited school cannot issue hours that count towards a licence, and no bursary will fund it.
Qualifications funded
- Air traffic services. Trained by ATNS at its own academy, not at a university.
- Commercial pilot licence. At an accredited flying school, funded by TETA.
- Aeronautical engineering. A university degree, funded by EDTEA, the SACAA and the general engineering schemes.
- Aircraft maintenance engineering. An SACAA-licensed qualification, usually at a specialist school.
- Aviation management and airport operations. Diplomas and degrees, funded by TETA and the transport departments.
- Aeronautical information management. An ATNS stream with no separate civilian qualification.
When to apply
| Period | Action |
|---|---|
| 30 September | The SACAA bursary closes at midnight. It is the same date every year. |
| September | TETA has closed in late September in recent rounds. |
| October – December | Apply to NSFAS for an aeronautical engineering degree at a public university. EDTEA has closed in December. |
| February | The ATNS round closed on 28 February in 2026. |
| Any time | Check the ATNS recruitment portal. It runs four intakes a financial year rather than one. |
See also our logistics and supply chain bursaries page, which covers TETA in full, engineering bursaries, and government bursaries for the transport department schemes.