MUMBAI, March 30 (PTI): Redbird Flight Training Academy has started a pilot’s training facility in Belagavi, Karnataka and said it aims to train 500 pilots every year from its network of institutes.
Currently, Redbird has six flying training institutes and has a fleet of 40 aircraft, comprising Tecnam P2008JC, Tecnam P2006T, Tecnam P Mentor, and Cessna 172.
Apart from Belagavi, it has facilities in Baramati (Maharashtra), Kalburgi (Karnataka), Lilabari (Assam), Seoni (Madhya Pradesh) and one in Sri Lanka. .
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Besides commercial pilot training, the Flight Training Organisation (FTO) also imparts training in drone flying and English Language Proficiency (ELP), among others, according to a release.
The Belgavi facility, inaugurated by Minister of State for Civil Aviation V K Singh on Wednesday, will equip aspiring and existing pilots with hands-on training, it said.
“The ministry has begun utilising and ensuring the proper ecosystem for the enhancement of the civil aviation test base. One of the main initiatives has been to train more flight examiners in India so that people do not have to travel abroad,” Singh was quoted as saying in the release.
“At the ministry, we are ensuring that more flight training organisations (academies) are established,” he added.
According to Redbird, it is looking to ramp up the aircraft fleet to 60 planes by the end of this year.
“The latest facility is expecting to train as many as 150-200 pilots in a year,” a Redbird spokesperson.
More than 150 pilots have already been trained and another 350 are undergoing training at its various other facilities in the country.
“Our growth became the largest in Asia Pacific with the operation of four Redbird FTOS within a calendar year. The vast majority of pilots who are trained in India currently still go through Redbird’s training programme,” Manjit Rajain, Chairman and Director of Redbird Flight Training Academy, said.
