IndUS Aviation plans training sites in India

Training centre for aircraft maintenance also likely

BY A CORRESPONDENT
February 7, 2006

IndUS Aviation, the manufacturers of Thorp T-211 and Thorpedo light sport aircraft, is planning to set up two pilot training centres in India. The company, in collaboration with its Indian subsidiary - Indus Aviation Products (IAPPL) - is also planning to set up a training college for aircraft maintenance.

"There is an increase in demand for flight training as the country's aviation industry is poised for a boom. The demand for pleasure flying is also gaining ground, and hence the need for more training institutes," Indus Aviation Managing Director (India Operations) Ravi Kiran Kota told Business Standard.

The company is planning to set up two institutes - one each in the south and north of the country - and the classes are slated to begin by March 1, 2006. However, the company did not not divulge the investments nor the locations for setting up the centres.

According to Indian aviation industry sources, setting up a training centre would cost a "few million dollars" and the American company is expected to invest "for a world-class facility".

IndUS also plans to install flight simulators at the colleges, first using small desktop sims and later adding bigger, high-end simulators. Two or three programmes for students looking to earn either an Indian commercial pilot license (CPL) or private flying license would be conducted at a time, with 20-25 students in each class. A CPL course would last 12 months, with the private course expected to take about half that time.

The institutes will eventually house Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) certified, multi-engine flight simulators, flight training devices, multimedia-equipped flight education classrooms, an aviation library and offices to support advanced flight training.