New Lithuanian Airline?
Story on Air Transport World Today:
Lithuanian capital Vilnius mayor Arturas Zuokas announced that authorities plan to launch a new local carrier called airLituanica. Details have not been disclosed but a local news website, 15min.lt, quoted Zuokas as saying city authorities could acquire 34% ownership in the new airline. He said strategic investors may acquire 49%-51% and Lithuanian investors may receive a 17% share. Flights could start in 2013.
Lithuania has not had a home-based scheduled carrier for three years. In January 2009, Vilnius (VNO)-based flyLAL (TE) declared bankruptcy and ceased operations (ATW Daily News, Aug. 16, 2010). The carrier blamed competitor AirBaltic, which launched flights from VNO on the same destinations and offered lower rates. Now several European low-cost carriers (LCCs), including Ryanair and Wizz Air, are competing in the Lithuanian market.
Former flyLAL shareholder Gediminas Ziemelis, now chairman of Avia Solutions Group, said the new carrier could find its niche in the market even though there is tough competition among LCCs.
“There are nearly 25 cities with [a] population [of] more than 350,000 people in 500-600 km. around Vilnius. The flights to these destinations will be in demand,” he said, noting that turboprops are probably the best solution for the carrier’s fleet.
Can you “excite young people about becoming an aviation professional?”
FL500 Admin 
Uncategorized 
commercial pilots licence, Flight Training, pilot shortage, pilot trainingWith resounding warnings of a worldwide pilot shortage, the United Nations aviation agency have opened a video contest. The International Civil Aviation Authority are asking individuals to create a video which excites young people about becoming an aviation professional.
Currently just under half a million of us hold a pilots licence. It’s estimated by 2030 the requirement will be nearer one million. With numbers of aircraft tripling in the same time period, it’s not just pilots who are set to be in demand. It’s expected around 20000 engineers and technicians will need to be trained per year.
ICAO, who act as an authority for safety, security, efficiency and regularity for it’s 191 member states have launched the competition on You Tube. The winner will be invited to the World Aviation Training Show in Orlando, Florida this April. So for all those bugging aviation movie makers out there, good luck!
Snow Problem?
I hope everybody has landed safely (where they are supposed to be) following a weekend of disappointed passengers, cold walkarounds, endless contaminated runway calculations and flying holding patterns.
I’ve been asked by loads of passengers, what is it that ‘actually’ collapses airports like LHR and LGW? I’ve jumped upon the team of commercial pilots here at Flight Level 500 to gather an inside track…
Initially it’s the necessity to de-ice. Aeroplanes only fly because of the shape of their wing. Ice contamination just isn’t acceptable! De-ice fluid is fired all over the wing by an elephant looking machine, however, there aren’t endless numbers of these machines so queues develop causing delays.
Stands – With queues for de-icing, aircraft are on stands for longer, there are only a finite number of stands at an airport so this holds up inbound traffic.
Runway clearing – Ever landed on snow? Slush? Ice? It is of course possible, up to a point, but in commercial aviation safety is a significantly higher priority than haste! So the runways are cleared of snow and ice periodically. How long do you think it takes to clear a 4km piece of Tarmac that’s much wider than a motorway?
Thanks to the FL500 pilots for teaching us why we shouldn’t always be so frustrated as passengers! They’re only looking out for us! There are a few more reasons the snow holds us up that I haven’t added above. Does anyone know what they could be? Please comment…. Next week – fog!
From Flight Training to Commercial Aviation
Hello all! Our team of Airline Pilots here at Flight Level 500 will now post a weekly blog, keeping you up to date with everything going on in the commercial aviation world.
The flight training industry is moving fast in reaction to the large uptrend in recruitment we are all predicting. This week British Airways have launched their campaign for non-type rated pilots which will ensure movement in the industry. Those of you looking for employment should be listing the airlines most likely to lose pilots as a result. Last week saw adverts in Flight International by Atlasjet for both rated and low hours pilots.
BREAKING NEWS -
As we type this post American Airlines have just announced the largest aircraft order in airline history. The record order is for 460 Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s for delivery between 2013 and 2022 with options on another 465, as replacements for its existing fleets of MD80s, 737-800s, 757s and 767s. This includes firm commitments for 200 more Boeing 737s, with options on another 100.
Chairman and Chief Executive Gerard Arpey said: “Today’s announcement paves the way for us to achieve important milestones in our company’s future, giving us the ability to replace our narrow-bodied fleet and finance it responsibly. This was an incredible opportunity for our company that presented itself from two great manufacturers. And, given our aggressive and ambitious fleet plans, we feel fortunate to have both Boeing and Airbus standing beside us to meet our needs.
“With today’s news, we expect to have the youngest and most fuel-efficient fleet among our peers in the US industry within five years. This new fleet will dramatically improve our fuel and operating costs, while enhancing our financial flexibility. More than that, with the power of our network and partnerships and the dedication of our people, we will be an even stronger competitor.” Those of you that are in the jobs market at the moment or with interviews looming pay close attention to the Chief Executive’s words. They give vital clues as to generically, what airlines are trying to achieve.
What’s going on at Flight Level 500?
Well as most of you will know we have officially launched our JOC course. This is being held at the British Airways Flight Training facility in Cranebank. The course is very heavily tailored towards the needs of airlines and run exclusively by trainers who are current in UK based airlines. The course was set up as a direct response to the requests of airlines and their requirement to strengthen the bridge between Flight Training and Commercial Aviation. This course will run along side our successful Pilot Mentor scheme where we educate those considering their routes to become an airline pilot and look after the commercial education of those in Flight School.
That’s it for this week. We’ll be back with you weekly or as soon as any important news breaks.
Safe flying! FL500
Getting into the Airlines – single day course at FL500 – Gatwick.
Flight Level 500 are proud to announce the launch of “Getting into the Airlines”.
This course, written by a collaboration of Flight Level 500 mentors, airline executives and recruitment managers will give you all the knowledge you need to find the airlines likely to recruit, source the best way into that airline and present yourself most effectively at interview. So far this course has seen its graduates find employment in a number legacy, low-cost and charter carriers.
You will arrive at our state of the art selection centre at London Gatwick dressed as you would deem appropriate for interview. We will spend the morning looking in detail at covering letters and CVs. No longer is a presentation of your information sufficient to succeed in this highly competitive industry. We teach you to sell yourself on paper giving you the very highest chance of beating the other thousands of applicants typically seen at application stage. In the morning you will also receive handouts detailing contact details for every UK and Ireland AOC holder and together we will define a structure and prioritisation for your application sending as well as teaching you how to get your CV in front of the right person.
After lunch we look in detail at interview questions and give you a structure for answering the toughest of competency based questions. We’ll help you to see exactly how to deliver your characteristics that the interviewer must see. After mock interviews for the class we will hold a critique ensuring none of us fall in to some of the interview traps we will have seen in the afternoon.
Following a full day on Flight Level 500’s Getting into the Airlines course you will feel thoroughly equipped with a firm structure to break your way into the ‘closed door’ world of commercial aviation. Of course, your mentor will be there to guide you all the way.
email: will.swinburn@FL500.com to reserve your place on our March course.
FLYER Professional Flight Training Exhibition 2010
The Professional Flight Training Exhibitions is the essential career exhibition for anyone considering a career on the flightdeck and is not to be missed. Visit the Flyer Show website for more information.
Demand for pilots is ’set to soar’ as plane travel grows.
Demand for pilots is ’set to soar’ as plane travel grows as published on www.bbc.co.uk
The global aviation industry will need to train and employ almost half a million new pilots over the next 20 years, according to the US aircraft manufacturer Boeing.
In addition, more than half a million new maintenance staff must be found, the aerospace giant said.
Currently, some 233,000 pilots and 100,000 mechanics and engineers work for airlines worldwide, it said.
About 40% of the extra demand would come from Asia, Boeing said.
Limited training capacity
Some 466,650 newly trained pilots and 596,500 newly trained maintenance staff will be needed between 2010 and 2029, Boeing predicted.
With demand set to rise particularly fast in Asia, especially in China, some 180,600 of the pilots and 220,000 of the mechanics would be needed there.
Adapting training regimes is a major challenge for the industry, said Roei Ganzarski, chief customer officer at Boeing Training and Flight Services.
“The infrastructure right now in the Asia Pacific is not necessarily on a scale that can address this entire requirement,” he added.
Recovery in the air
Passenger numbers have rebounded well since a downturn in demand for air travel that accompanied the financial crisis and recession in several countries.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said passenger traffic rose 9.2% in July compared with a year earlier. The strongest performance was in the Asia Pacific region, where growth rose by 10.9% year on year.
However, in Europe and North America, fragile consumer confidence could result in a slower pace of recovery, IATA’s director general Giovanni Bisignani warned.
‘A lot of new engineers’
In China, demand for pilots in could be twice or three times as great as the number going through current and planned training facilities, according to Mr Bisignani.
This might result in Chinese airlines recruiting pilots abroad, he predicted.
Boeing’s forecasts are consistent with industry predictions of a doubling in air passengers by 2030, according to Jon Ostrower, a blog editor for the Flightglobal website.
By then, the skills airlines will require its staff to have could be drastically different, he said.
“You’re going to need a heck of a lot of new engineers, at a time when a large proportion of engineers, certainly in the US, are retiring,” he said.
“The focus for these skills will move to places like Brazil, home of [the aircraft manufacturer] Embraer, where the engineering workforce is significantly younger”.
See our feature in the Flight Training News
Student recognition for Flight Level 500 members
Flight Level 500, a research, mentoring and networking club for student pilots, has achieved student recognition for its members through the National Union of Students (NUS).
According to Flight Level 500 co-founder, Will Swinburn – a first officer with British Airways – the organisation has secured NUS Extra cards for all of its members. Now, for the first time, students who are in flight training and not studying a government recognised academic qualification, will be elegible for the student card, allowing them access to certain student-only venues as well as hundreds of discounts in high streets and Internet-based stores.
Flight Level 500, launched last year, already has some 300 members. The organisation offers dedicated pilot mentoring to assist individuals who are looking to embark upon professional flight training – from initial help looking for a flight school, to mentoring during a student’s training, and ultimately to support a pilot’s progress into a flying career. www.FL500.com
FL500 welcomes BCFT students.
Flight Level 500 would like to thank everyone at Bournemouth Commercial Flight Training for their hospitality yesterday (22 Jul. 2010). Will Swinburn was given a tour of a most welcoming and approachable Flight Training Organisation and met with a full turnout of students for an informal lunch and chat about the industry. Will was most impressed by the set up at the FTO where there was a real feeling of support and comradery amongst staff and students. The employment statistics at the flying school were also impressive. For those of you in research, Bournemouth Commercial Flight Training carry out flight training and ground school at their facility on Bournemouth International Airport, the same commercial airport used by a number of British airlines. Go to www.bcft.org.uk or see the FL500 forum for more information.
It’s our pleasure to welcome the students of BCFT as members of Flight Level 500. Your mentors will be in contact with you via email very shortly and your NUS student cards en-route.
Flight Level 500 take off with Connexions!
Flight Level 500 are proud to announce the first of a series of events to be held along side Connexions Oxfordshire. Together they will educate students from 16 to those in university on the career of an airline pilot. The aviation profession is one that can be seenas under represented in the careers advisory arena and together FL500 and Connexions plan to increase it’s profile.
The series will begin on October 13th 2010 where teaching staff and careers advisors from Oxfordshire will be invited to attend an evening titled “My student wants to be a pilot!” It will be a two hour session from 4pm until 6pm led by Will Swinburn. The emphasis being to keep the evening fun and light hearted yet also giving the staff a good grounding as to how the profession works, what’s required, what it entails and most importantly, giving them an armoury of resources to use if ever needed!
Following the teaching staff evening we intend to deliver a very similar seminar to students who dream of a career in aviation. FL500 and Connexions would like to add that the flight training and aviation information evenings will be completely free for all to attend. Do you want to be a pilot? Not sure the exact route to follow to become an airline pilot? Contact Flight Level 500 using the contact page at www.FL500.com for more information.
Categories
Blog Posts By Date
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Feb | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | |||
Recent Posts
- New Lithuanian Airline?
- Can you “excite young people about becoming an aviation professional?”
- Snow Problem?
- From Flight Training to Commercial Aviation
- Getting into the Airlines – single day course at FL500 – Gatwick.