Faroese aviation academy in 2024

The Faroese flag carrier this morning announced its plans to open an aviation academy in the Faroes.

The first stage of the project consists of setting up a state-of-the-art simulator for helicopter pilots.

Myndareportasja: Móttøka hjá Atlantsflog

“There is great demand internationally for helicopter simulators,” said the airline’s committee chairman, Niels Mortensen.

“Helicopter pilots are required to undergo simulator training twice a year. There are only 12 helicopter simulators of this type in the world, and we will now build a thirteenth here in the Faroes.”

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The total project cost is estimated at DKK 100 million, and Mortensen believes this investment will pay off within a few years.

“We had healthy profits in 2019, and we navigated our way out of the pandemic fairly well. We are confident that we have a strong financial backbone to support this project.”

Myndareportasja: Móttøka hjá Atlantsflog

Once the academy is up and running – by Q1 2024 if all goes according to plan – it will immediately start serving as an alternative source of income for the airline, he added.

“Our own pilots will no longer need to travel abroad for their training, and we are confident that pilots from across the world will want to undergo their training here in the Faroes. Over the medium to long term, the academy will contribute significantly to the company’s overall finances.”

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When asked whether the airline is not venturing too far beyond its core business of transporting passengers to and from the Faroes, the committee chairman said:

Myndareportasja: Móttøka hjá Atlantsflog

“The academy complements our core business activities very well and it fits perfectly into our expansion plans.

“We have done our homework thoroughly and there is no doubt that there is a very high demand from across the world for this type of aviation training.”

Read the Faroese versions of this article here and here.

More Faroese News in English.