Korea Airports Corp. officially opened its Aviation Training Center at Gimpo International Airport on Tuesday, in preparation to begin its first Jet Transition Course program Monday.

The newly opened 4,000-square-meter center includes training jets, six full-flight simulators, as well as classrooms and briefing rooms.

The center will allow pilots at Korean airlines to receive their licensing training in Korea, rather than having to travel abroad to be certified. The Jet Transition Course is an advanced stage in the airline pilot training process and no organization had offered the training in Korea until now.

According to the KAC, Korean airlines including Korean Air and Asiana Airlines have been paying to send pilots abroad to programs such as the Airline Pilot Program in the US for higher-level training.

The Aviation Training Center was set up jointly with Canadian Aviation Electronics, a Canadian company that manufactures aircraft simulators and provides flight crew training services.

By providing the advanced Jet Transition Course in Korea, the KAC said that the Aviation Training Center will help to increase the competitiveness of pilots at Korean airlines and increase airline safety here.

In addition to openly recruited trainees, the KAC signed a deal with Asiana Airlines to provide the Jet Transition Course to Asiana’s pilot trainees.

Beginning with the first class of trainees entering the program on June 19, the KAC plans to run the program seven times before the end of the year. 

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)