Airbus opens Engineering and Training Centre in Bangalore

Bangalore, Oct 31 (UNI) With a huge market for passenger aircraft beckoning, French aircraft major Airbus today opened two training centres to train Engineers and Pilots, the biggest such facility outside its base in Toulouse, France, here today.

Speaking to news persons, Airbus CEO Thomas Enders said the Airbus engineering Centre and Airbus trainig Centre, which was set up in a tie up with CAE, leader in integrated training solutions, would train more than 1000 Engineers and Pilots every year.

The training Centres would provide training in stimulators, flight management systems, aerodynamics and critical management works, he added.

Mr Elders said the Centres was part of Airbus' USD 600 million offset commitment to the Union Government. India offered a great market to Airbus which had won a dominating 75 per cent of aircraft ordered by the country during the last two years. "Indian civil aviation is growing at 40 per cent per annum and it will need 1000 pilots per year from now onwards. We are committed to serve the country which provide us a great market share," he added.

He said despite fast growing civil aviation India's training infrastructure remained underdeveloped and Airbus as the manufacturer of aircraft would take it as a challenge to help it.

"We will screen, evaluate candidates selected by India's major airliners and will also provide stimulators, offices, instructors, pilots and software to train pilots and engineers for the aviation industry," he added.

The French aviation major would be setting up seven 'real experience' stimulators -- six for A 320 and another for A 330 aircraft costing between 12 to 15 million dollars each at the training centre.

Mr Enders said in the past Airbus had been a dominant player only in Europe and India offered it great potential in its pursuit to become the biggest player globally.

He complimented Kingfisher Airlines CMD and liquor baron Vijay Mallya for bringing the two centres to the city. The company was scouting for a suitable place which included the Bangalore, Hyderabad and some other cities but Mr Mallya had persuaded Airbus to set up the training centres in Bangalore.

Incidentally Kingfisher is the first Indian airliner to order for the 525-seater A380, the most advanced and the biggest airliner produced by the Airbus.

Mr Mallya, who was present at the state-of-the-art training centre said that as the native of Karntaka and an MP representing the state he had the responsibility to bring such modern training centres to the state and he was happy that Airbus decided to set up them in Bangalore.

He said people were surprised when he ordered A380 for Kingfisher airlines. "A lot of people wondered why I did it. Let them be surprised. It feels nice to surprise," he said with a smile.

UNI