'Rising Tide' of Bought-in Training Favors FSB

An increased tendency after September 11 for major airlines to buy in services and abandon some previously in-house activities, means good business for Flight Safety Boeing, which claims to be the world's largest independent airline training provider, educating both flight and ground maintenance personnel.

There's no gloom in this sector of the civil aviation spectrum, according to Gary Scott, president of the company which employs about 800 people, 500 of them instructors, at 22 centers on all five continents. That FSB is headquartered in Seattle and is 50% owned by Boeing should not mislead you into thinking that its training is wholly Boeing-biased: the company is equipped, ready and willing to supply the airlines with people thoroughly conversant with Airbus and other aircraft too.

Demand for third-party training is "cascading through the industry" and creating a lot of opportunity for third-party providers, Streeter told Show News here. "Airlines see that out-sourcing their training gives them a lot of opportunity" he said.

He said he welcomes this trend for reasons beyond the obvious commercial benefits for third-party providers. "Reducing in-house training in favor of outside sourcing will reduced dependence on individual company practices and lead to greater standardization across the airline industry, with obvious s commercial and safety benefits.

"In this case a rising tide lifts all ships," he said.

FST disclosed the signing of a long-term contract to supply full-flight simulator training to over 200 China Northern MD-90 pilots, initially at its Long Beach training center and later at a new in-country facilities it has in Kunming. Over the past year personnel of no fewer that ten airlines have been trained there.

By Bob Rodwell