OREANDA-NEWS. Boeing [NYSE: BA] has announced it will expand its flight and maintenance training capabilities in Russia with a new, state-of-the-art training campus.

The new full-service training facility— set to open in 2015—will be located in the Skolkovo Innovation Center in Moscow. Boeing will work in cooperation with Industrial Investors Group and their subsidiary Transas on the project.

"We are bringing Boeing's flight and maintenance training closer to our Russian customers, giving them the world-class support they need to successfully operate and maintain their fleets," said Sherry Carbary, vice president, Boeing Flight Services. "Airlines in the region will benefit from a technologically advanced training campus staffed by the industry's best qualified and most experienced pilots and instructors."

Initial capability will include flight, maintenance and specialty training. Local maintenance training will be available across the spectrum of Boeing aircraft currently in operation, and flight training capability will include locally based instructors.

"We are delighted to become technology partners in this unique project," said Nikholay Lebedev, president, Transas Group. "We strongly appreciate that our flight simulation technologies have become part of this international project, aimed at improving the efficiency and quality of flight crew training in Russia—a sign of confidence in our products that we are proud of."           

The new facility will open with four simulator bays, featuring three Next-Generation 737 full-flight simulators and one 777 full-flight simulator. Two of the simulators will be built by Transas. The facility is designed to allow for expansion to accommodate additional training capacity as required by customers.

Groundbreaking on the new training and research campus is scheduled for spring 2014, with training beginning in mid-2015.

"We are honored to be a leading partner of Russian aerospace industry for 20 years," said Sergey Kravchenko, president of Boeing Russia and CIS. "The Flight Services Training Center is another testament to our mutually beneficial partnership strategy."
The Boeing 2013 Pilot & Technician Outlook estimates that the Commonwealth of Independent States, including Russia, will require 15,200 new commercial airline pilots and 18,000 new technicians over the next two decades, supporting 1,530 new commercial airplanes by 2032. The new training campus in Russia is a significant investment in the region's aviation safety, and will reduce travel times for airline crews and the costs of sending students for training.

Boeing Flight Services continually examines the global outlook for aviation training, and works to ensure training is available where it's needed—near customers. In November, ground was broken on a new training facility in Korea. In August, Miami became the hub for pro forma flight training in the Americas— including 787 training —after the placement of additional flight simulators from Seattle. Three new simulators were also announced for the global training network in 2013: a third 787 full-flight simulator in London, and additional 777 and Next-Generation 737 simulators in Singapore.