The Hindu Business Line : Kingfisher to tie up with foreign schools for pilots

A tie-up between Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) and aviation schools in the US and Australia is imminent, and the company will induct students who have been trained at specified institutions as pilots to address the needs of a fleet that will be nearly 100-aircraft strong by the year-end.

Mr Rajesh Verma, Executive Vice-President, KFA, said that those recruited would typically be Indian students who have received their Commercial Pilot Licences from these schools.

The norm for the industry is 10 pilots per normal bodied aircraft and around 22 for the wide bodied craft, and the shortage was of commanders rather than first officers, he said.

Deccan merger

Speaking about the merger of Deccan Aviation with KFA, Mr Verma said that Accenture was doing a study to recommend the organisational structure of the merged entity.

Also, that the process of re-branding of the Deccan fleet would be complete by April, and that a radical transformation was on the cards.

“We are giving a complete face-lift, both in terms of the aircraft’s physical appearance and elements of service, cabin crew training and in-flight cuisine, to make this the best low-cost airline.”

Training academy

Announcing the launch of the Kingfisher Training Academy in Pune, Mr Verma said that the plan was to set up a dozen such schools in India for training youngsters for the aviation and hospitality industries during this year.

With institutions in place in Mumbai, Hyderabad and Pune, they will also be launched in Delhi, Chandigarh, Nagpur, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Goa, Kolkata, Guwahati and Indore, involving an investment of around Rs 60 crore.

The Pune KTA will become operational by March.

The company, which currently has a combined strength of 80 aircraft (including 41 of DA), will add 16 more aircraft during the year.

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