A PUSH is under way to secure a $20m national pilot academy at the Mount Gambier Airport, which could potentially attract hundreds of budding aviators to the city.
This follows the national carrier Qantas announcing plans to establish an academy at an existing regional airfield.
It is understood the airline is canvassing regional areas with airfields that have relatively unrestricted airspace.
Member for Mount Gambier Troy Bell has written to Qantas Group chief executive officer Alan Joyce to lure the academy to the region.
The incumbent MP has also requested a personal meeting with Qantas executives to get the initiative off the ground.
Mount Gambier Chamber of Commerce president Lynette Martin yesterday urged Qantas to consider the city.
“We would welcome the Qantas pilot academy with open arms to our city,” Ms Martin said.
“This would create an amazing boom for our region’s economy.”
Ms Martin said Mount Gambier was ideally situated given it was halfway between Melbourne and Adelaide.
“The academy would also provide the opportunity for growth at the airport,” she said.
Under the plan, the pilot academy would train up to 100 pilots per year with a vision to increase this number to 500.
Mr Bell described the academy as a “fabulous” opportunity for the Mount Gambier district.
“We are ideally situated between Melbourne and Mount Gambier, we are close to the coast and can offer relatively free airspace,” the incumbent MP said.
Mr Bell said it was vital diverse businesses were attracted to the region to drive economic benefit to Mount Gambier and the Limestone Coast.
“Our region has a number of very successful businesses which provide employment to thousands of residents within the region and we should not be afraid to look outside of the square to entice more businesses to our region,” Mr Bell said.
Grant District Council chief executive officer Trevor Smart – whose council owns and operates the airport – said the Qantas proposal was announced late last month.
“As a council, we will continue to look at all opportunities that benefit the region and the airport,” Mr Smart said.
He said the council was also willing to explore working with all partners to achieve outcomes.
According to Qantas, the academy would provide direct entry for pilots into the Qantas Group, including Jetstar and QantasLink.
The Qantas Group has more than 3500 pilots and has plans to recruit an additional 350 pilots by the end of 2018.
In a statement, Mr Joyce said the academy would become a critical part of the national carrier’s long term talent pipeline and an important resource for Australian aviation.
“Qantas has a proud history of having some of the best pilots in the world and we want to make sure it stays that way. By creating our own academy, we can train the next generation of pilots to the Qantas Group standard,” Mr Joyce said.
“Over time, we see potential for the academy to become a competitive advantage for Australia in the region. It could train pilots for other airlines and grow into the largest academy of its kind in the southern hemisphere.”
The typical path for most students entering the academy will be high school and university graduates with strong academic performance.
After up to 18 months of classroom, simulator and real-world flight training, students would then receive further training specific to the type of aircraft they will fly before entering service as a first officer on turboprop aircraft, sitting next to an experienced captain.
