Patria relocates initial pilot training to Spain

Patria has decided to relocate their initial civil pilottraining operations from Tampere-Pirkkala, Finland, to Córdoba, Spain. Patria’ssingle-engine DA40 fleet will be based in Córdoba while theoretical training,simulator training and multi-engine training with DA42 fleet will remain inFinland. Patria’s aircraft maintenance operations at its currentTampere-Pirkkala base are expected to increase after the move, as modern hangarspace will become available there.

"The purpose of the move is to secure Patria´s plannedgrowth in commercial pilot training business. Our main driver was to takeadvantage of favorable weather conditions in Spain, which allows efficientpilot training throughout the year. This improves utilization of Patria´s fleeta great deal. Our goal is to increase our training capacity with existing fleetto become better equipped for increasing demand from our international airlinepartners,” says Jyrki Myyryläinen, vice president of Patria´s Aviation trainingbusiness.

"First staff members will be stationed in Córdoba inMay 2019 to prepare for the start of our operations there. During previouswinter, a week-long proof of concept exercise was carried out in Córdoba totest the operational environment and infrastructure under actual trainingconditions. After the exercise, we became assured that Córdoba is not only anefficient environment for initial pilot training, but also provides us aplatform for safe year-round training according to our plans," continuesMyyryläinen.

Patria´s operation in Córdoba will start during summer 2019. The first students to initiate their flight training in Spain will be Patria´s ab-initio group earmarked for Nordic Regional Airlines. Training in Spain will be supervised and audited by the Finnish Transport and Communications Authority Traficom. Aircraft maintenance in Spain will be outsourced to a local subcontractor.