This week saw Emirates announce an order for three twin-engine Diamond DA-42 aircraft for its in-house training school.
For the UAE-based carrier, this represents an overall investment of four million EUR and will be used to “help close the industry’s skills gap” and “train pilots of the future”.
These aircraft will join the Emirates Flight Training Academy’s fleet of 22x Cirrus SR22s & five Embraer Phenom 100EV aircraft.
Executive Comments…
Commenting on the order was Captain Abdulla Al Hammadi, the VP of Emirates’ Flight Training Academy (EFTA):
“Our new fleet from Diamond Aircraft is part of our larger strategic intent for our cadet program.”
“It helps us design a bridging MEP program for cadets to gain more flying experience while progressing from a single-engine to a light jet aircraft.”
“It strengthens our offering and makes it more unique, rounded, and robust. Our cadets will benefit hugely as they gain experience on three different types of aircraft, even before they’re licensed.”
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“The new fleet also helps us go above and beyond in complying with the new GCAA guidelines. The DA42-VI is reliable, eco-friendly, and a practical platform for MEP training.”
“We’re confident we’ve made the right choice.”
Also commenting on the order was Liqun Zhang, the CEO of Diamond Aircraft in Austria:
“We are thrilled that our DA42-VI is the choice for Emirates’ flight training. This, once again, solidifies the aircraft’s position as the industry-leading multi-engine piston trainer”.
“With Emirates, we are adding another premier flight academy to our long list of renowned training operators and are looking forward to supporting them with the most advanced and eco-friendly aircraft available on the market today.”
Timeline for Emirates’ New Aircraft…
According to the UAE-based airline, delivery of the three Diamond DA-42s will be completed by the first half of this year.
This will enable the carrier to continue its success of graduating more than 100 cadets since 2020.
EFTA’s state-of-the-art facility, which is equal to 200 football fields, has 36 modern classrooms, 6 full-motion flight simulators, an independent Air Traffic Control Tower, and a dedicated 1,800m long runway.
Ground school (53 weeks): All 36 classrooms are equipped with two 86” touchscreens, running bespoke training software created specifically for EFTA.
Cadets undergo 900 hours of training and access the material via their own devices, which are all connected to each other, creating an interactive training environment.
Flying school (250 hours): cadets currently train on simulators, single-engine Cirrus, and Phenom jets.
Overall, it is clear that Emirates is placing significant investment into training the pilots of the future, and these new aircraft will help develop more cadets going into the future.
