MUMBAI, Dec 9: Private carrier Jet Airways, which expects its aviation academy to be functional from early next year here, has said it will set up similar centres in Delhi and Kolkata to cater to the growing in-house and industry demand.
“We have received provisional clearance for our aviation training academy and we expect to receive a formal nod from the Corporate Affairs Ministry shortly,” sources close to the development told.
Initially, the airline had planned to set up the academy in Mumbai alone. “But with queries coming in from other cities, we have decided to expand it to Delhi and Kolkata as well along with Mumbai,” the sources said.
In its 2012 annual report, the Naresh Goyal-owned carrier had told its shareholders it will create two subsidiary ventures for setting up a marketing services company and an aviation training academy.
As part of the plan, the academy will run certificate courses, ranging between one-and-half month to three months in the areas such as cabin crew, airport services like ticketing, check-ins, and security apart from crew resources management and personality enhancement.
“Our efforts will be to absorb these students, passing out from the academy, within the airline. Besides, we will also help them get jobs at other places,” they said.
The whole idea is to make these centres a common platform with courses in pilots and engineering training going forward, they said.
“Going by the orders placed by domestic carriers for planes, demand for these jobs is expected to rise multi-fold in the year to come,” they added.
Besides no-frills airline IndiGo, which has placed orders for acquiring 180 aircraft in 2011, SpiceJet and GoAir also have placed large orders with Boeing, Airbus and Bombardier.
National carrier Air India is also to take delivery of 24 Boeing 787s over a period of time.
Jet is the second domestic carrier to foray into the aviation education segment after Kingfisher started a similar training institution in 2007.
The move to set up training academy and marketing services centres is aimed at boosting the Jet group’s revenue through ancillary activities at a time when high taxes and jet fuel prices are resulting into sagging topline.
Revenues generated other than ticket fares are ancillary revenues. In the last quarter, Jet’s non-ticket revenue stood at USD 8 per passenger, which it aims to take to 10-15 per cent in the next couple of years. (PTI)
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