Comments
Airlines in India and other parts of the world might soon be able to cut their wage bills and increase the efficiency of their pilots. This will be possible because of the new pilot training academy which opens its doors in Noida, on the outskirts of Delhi in the next 13-14 months. The facility, a three-way joint-venture between Canadian CAE, European aircraft manufacturer Airbus and Gurgaon-based InterGlobe, will be in a position to eventually train 4,000 to 5,000 pilots annually.
The academy is designed to help pilots undergo different types of training. “The facility takes existing pilots who have to go back for training every six months, which includes the need to go through and show proficiency in flying an aircraft. It is also meant for new cadet pilots who need to obtain pilot rating certificates and for pilots who are migrating from one aircraft type to another,” said Mr Jeff Roberts, Group President, Civil Simulation Products, Training and Services, CAE.
Cost, time savings
Incidentally, a pilot has to undergo training at least twice a year — the first time in the instruments on an aircraft and the other on local training checks, done on a simulator. The first training lasts about five days. In addition, pilots flying with airlines in India also need to undergo special training before the monsoon season and CAT-II training, which allows them to operate in inclement weather.
Besides, a pilot needs more training as he or she gains more experience and moves on to becoming a captain and finally a check pilot.
“On an average, a pilot is available for about 200 days in a year. If an airline can save on travel time for getting the mandatory training done, it will translate into a big saving for it, both in cost and time. In that sense the Noida facility will help improve availability of pilots for an airline,” said an industry analyst.
This could be the silver lining for the industry, which is expected to post losses of about Rs 2,500 crore during the first six months of the current fiscal. For most domestic airlines the wage bill is one of the costliest heads in their operations. Airlines will also save on paying out allowances and the time it takes to fly pilots abroad for training. Incidentally, in the 1980s, when the Airbus aircraft was inducted into India, the pilots were trained in Miami.
Standardised platform
But does the training centre have anything to do with IndiGo's decision to order close to 300 Airbus aircraft? IndiGo created history when, as a start-up airline, it ordered 100 Airbus aircraft about five years back. In followed this up with an order of another 180 aircraft in the recent past.While accepting that IndiGo will be a big user of the facility, the Executive Vice-President, Marketing and Contract, Airbus, Dr Kiran Rao, said that this was not part of the aircraft purchase deal. “That (deal) was (with) IndiGo, this is InterGlobe. It will go towards what we have promised the Indian Government. But you should not look at it as an IndiGo or as an Indian deal. We had promised the Indian Government that we will facilitate and put in place a programme for training. And this is what it is. It is not a one-off thing.”
“The academy will ensure that ad-hocism is removed from the training pattern and will help bring all airlines and pilots on to one standard platform, which is important,” felt Mr Ravi Menon, Executive Director, Air Works.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.