Originally Posted by HSLD
Glad to hear from you, and I defer to your opinion/insight. I was told [from a source I respect] that the Changi facility, when finished, will have enormous capacity and is being booked now. I hope I'm wrong
Here is Alteon's press release:
Alteon Breaks Ground with Its Newest Training Center in Singapore
Singapore, Feb. 16, 2006 - Alteon Training, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company (NYSE BA), broke ground on a new regional training center in Singapore today.
The Singapore Training Center is located near Changi International Airport in the eastern part of Singapore. Upon completion in October, the approximately 7,000-square-meter state-of-the-art facility will have the capability to train more than 6,000 pilot and flight attendant students per year.
The Guest-of-Honor at the groundbreaking ceremony, Mrs. Lim Hwee Hua, minister of State for Finance and Transport, said, "Alteon's decision to set up its regional training center here, and its experience and leadership in the field, will continue to strengthen Singapore's reputation as a key aviation hub and attract other aerospace-related companies to invest in Singapore."
"Today's groundbreaking ceremony marks a significant milestone in Alteon's expansion plans in Asia-Pacific," said Alteon President Pat Gaines. "We recognize the high-growth potential of the region and at the same time increased demand for pilots and operations crew required to operate and maintain the new aircraft ordered by many airlines in the region."
"Our new facility in Singapore is another example of our commitment to working with our partner airline customers by providing them with cost-effective and geographically convenient total training solutions to match their requirements," he added.
The three-story training facility will house seven full flight simulator bays. The training center will host a cabin emergency evacuation trainer and other advanced-technology training devices such as flat-panel trainers (FPT). Pilot and flight attendant training will employ workstations equipped with self-guided computer based training, allowing students to progress at their own pace. The center will house six classrooms, a computer based training room and a student lounge.
Initial plans call for the installation of six full-flight simulators: one Boeing 777200ER/300/300ER; one Boeing 747-400; one Airbus A320; one Boeing 737-300 EFIS Classic; one 737 NG; and one Fokker 100 to support the region's burgeoning airlines. In addition, a suite of A320 Safety Emergency Procedures equipment will be installed.
Alteon has four other training centers in the Asia-Pacific region, including Brisbane, Australia; Seoul/Inchon, South Korea; Kunming and Tianjin, China.
It would look like they are tapping into the potential for contract training for the newer airlines in India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Singapore itself. I'm sure they'll get lots of business and be successful, but it doesn't address the need for new pilots to make the numbers.
The other day I was reading that Indian Airlines own ab-initio program only graduates 50+ pilots per year. The Indian market needs significant capacity increases for basic training and they haven't even really started yet. China is doing slightly better, I forget the numbers they could train in a year, but it was well into the hundreds.
From what I see with Emirates ab-initio program it takes two years+ to train a guy from the word go until he is sitting in the right seat of a widebody. Then it is another 8-10 years until he could entertain upgrading to Captain.
It's all good for us as there will be plenty of opportunities for both expat Captains and First Officers in the region with the wild expansion plans in India, China, and the Middle East. Hopefully it ratchets up the pay as well.
Typhoonpilot