14:20 GMT, February 12, 2009 Bangalore, India | CAE announced at Aero India that it has begun pilot training at its India-based training centre in Bangalore where Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 Level D full-flight simulators are now fully operational and certified by India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The six-bay centre is located close to the newly-opened Bangalore International Airport at Devanahalli. While training has started in the simulator bay area, construction on the remainder of the centre is currently being completed.

CAE’s training centre is the first independent training centre in India. Its customers include Indian-based airlines Kingfisher Airlines, Indigo and Spicejet. New customers including commercial pilots of the Indian Air Force as well as Go Air have also started training at the centre.

“CAE is proud to support the growth of the Indian aviation market with a centre in the Bangalore hub,” said Jeff Roberts, CAE’s Group President, Innovation and Civil Training & Services. “Our Bangalore training centre demonstrates our commitment to provide training solutions worldwide, close to our customers' base of operations. India is home to one of the fastest growing civil aviation industries in the world. CAE will continue to expand its presence to meet its customers’ demands, offering best-in-class simulation-based training.”

CAE’s Bangalore training centre is part of the CAE-Airbus cooperation. Initially, approximately 1,000 pilots will train per year at the centre. Additional simulators will be added over the next three years to increase capacity as needed. Experienced pilots and new graduates from the CAE Global Academy as well as pilot training academies in India will be able to train at the centre for their type-rating.

In addition to the Bangalore training centre, CAE now provides pilot training in two national flight academies. CAE is the managing partner of the Indian government’s flight training academy, Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi (IGRUA). CAE also has a joint venture with the Airport Authority of India (AAI) for the National Flying Training Institute (NFTI) which is currently training its first classes of cadets.

CAE’s expansion in India will help address the shortage of pilots in the region. Indian carriers have approximately 420 aircraft currently in active service and have ordered an estimated additional 380 aircraft to be delivered over the next five years—generating the need for more than 800 new pilots per year.

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Aero India 2009 Press Room
http://www.defpro.com/confairs/profile/aero_india/pressroom/