InterGlobe and CAE inaugurate India’s largest pilot training facility

Rahul Bhatia, InterGlobe, Marc Parent, CAE

InterGlobe Enterprises, the parent company of India’s largest domestic airline, IndiGo, and CAE, a global leader in flight simulators and training, inaugurated India’s largest pilot training facility in India. Located in Greater Noida, in the National Capital Region (NCR), the Centre, CAE Simulation Training Private Limited (CSTPL), is a joint venture between InterGlobe Enterprises and CAE with an initial investment of $25 million.

The Centre starts with two CAE Series 5000 A320 full-flight simulators certified level D, and has the capacity to expand to six simulators. The facility provides “wet” and “dry” type-rating, recurrent, conversion and jet indoctrination training for commercial aircraft pilots of IndiGo, and will commence training, GoAir’s A320 pilots from December. CSTPL will also be the first centre in India to impart Airbus certified training, and can train up to 5,000 pilots per year.

CSTPL is the fourth aviation training location that CAE operates in India. CAE already trains more than 1,500 crew members every year at its training centre in Bengaluru, the first independent training centre in India and the first to earn approval as a fixed-wing Type Rating Training Organisation (TRTO). CAE also operates a joint venture helicopter training centre in Bengaluru and in partnership with the Government of India, CAE operates ab-initio flight schools in Gondia and Rae Bareli, located in the parliamentary constituencies of former civi aviation minister Praful Patel, and India’s first political dynasty, the Gandhis.

India is expected to be the fourth largest aviation market in the world, with a large demand for narrow-body pilots. IndiGo and GoAir have placed orders for 180 and 72 A320 family aircraft respectively. IndiGo already has 71 A320-232 aircraft in its fleet from an original order for 100 A320s.

The country’s other two major carriers, Air India and Jet Airways have their own in-house training facilities.