Special Report: Training
Gulf carriers step up pilot training
Asia-Pacific airlines have long complained about the pirating of pilots by expanding Gulf carriers who are estimated to need 2,000 new pilots annually. The problem is unlikely to disappear, but it could ease as Middle East operators expand their training facilities.
July 1st 2013
With hundreds of jets arriving in the next decade and beyond, Gulf airlines are ensuring a steady flow of new pilots are available for their rapidly growing aircraft fleets. The latest development: a new pilot training facility in Dubai that makes the United Arab Emirates (UAE) one of the world’s leading crew training centres. Read More »
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| A pilot receives training in a CAE-built full flight simulator from a member of ECFT’s training team |
Opened in May, the joint venture between Emirates Airline and CAE Flight Training (ECFT) - its second Dubai facility – gives the project the capacity to service more than 200 aviation clients and train more than 10,000 pilots and technicians a year. The training programme will be on a range of aircraft from Boeing and Airbus commercial jets to business jets and helicopters.
At the same time, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways, which employs 1,400 pilots and plans to recruit 1,000 more by 2020, is tapping the resources of its partner airlines to increase its flight deck strength.
It is recruiting 50 pilots from airberlin, in which Etihad holds a 29% stake. The transfers began in April when the first batch of six B737-rated first officers arrived in Abu Dhabi for type conversion training for the B777 at Etihad Airways’ flight training centre.
By November this year, Etihad will have more than doubled the size of its training centre, with a new facility that will house flight simulators for A320, A330/A340, A350, A380, B777 and B787 aircraft.
Doha-based Qatar Airways, with 250 aircraft to be delivered in the next few years, also has been strengthening its pilot supply chain. It recently extended a training agreement with Bahrain-based Gulf Aviation Academy (GAA) with the signing of a long-term agreement for flight crew.
This contract is in addition to its selection last year of leading airline training organization, CTC Aviation, to supply pilots to support its rapid expansion.
The new ECFT facility at the Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO) commercial park brings the partners’ joint investment in the region to more than $260 million.
Founded in 2002, ECFT’s original business was conducted from a satellite centre in modest premises in the Dubai Airport Freezone, with two full-flight training simulators (FFS).
In 2003, growing demand saw it move to a newly-built training centre adjacent to the Emirates Aviation College in Garhoud, Dubai. With 13 training bays, the Garhoud facility was approaching full capacity, sparking the need for a second training centre.
The latest facility covers 17,000 sq metres and will initially house five FFS training bays. Three have been installed. The centre features 10 briefing/de-briefing rooms, three large classrooms and a high-tech, computer-based training room.
In Abu Dhabi, Etihad’s 77 aircraft fleet will grow significantly this decade with more than 90 scheduled for delivery. In the next 12 months alone it will take delivery of four B777-300ERs, five A320s, one A321, one A330-200 and one A330-200 freighter aircraft. Late next year the carrier will introduce its first A380 and B787.
Etihad chief executive, James Hogan, said recruiting pilots from airberlin was part of a broader process to strengthen its alliance with equity group partners. “With airberlin we are already sharing resources, integrating our fleet programmes, aligning our well-experienced personnel, and developing careers,” he said.
Since December 2011, Etihad and airberlin have worked together on pilot training, common maintenance, alignment of B787 Dreamliner orders, integration of their frequent flyer programmes and the sharing of infrastructure.
