flydubai plans to open a US$56 million full-flight simulator (FFS) and training facility. The construction work has already commenced and the advanced facility is scheduled to be fully operational by January 2025.
Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer at flydubai, said: “over the last 14 years, flydubai has been on a tremendous growth trajectory that has seen the carrier evolve and innovate to become the airline it is today. The US$56 million investment in the new training facility marks another milestone in our success story and reflects our unwavering commitment to operational efficiency and excellence. With more than 130 aircraft scheduled for delivery by 2035, the pressure of confirming available training slots with third-party simulator providers is alleviated by having our own simulator facility.”
The new 38,000-ft² facility is located on the grounds of the flydubai campus and will be home to six simulator bays, offering capacity of more than 43,000 training hours a year. The building’s modular construction design allows for future expansion.
Mohammed Hareb AlMheiri, Chief Technology and Supply Chain Officer at flydubai, said: “We are proud to announce the plans for our very own full-flight simulator facility which has always been a vital part of our growth strategy. As the demand for pilots and pilot training continues to soar in the region, it has become essential for airlines to have their own training facilities, enabling them to take more control over their training requirements. The new facility, which is set to open in 2025, will enable us to reduce our training cost, have firm control over our pilot training and retraining schedules and further support our growth trajectory.”
“We are working closely with CAE who will be providing the Boeing 737 MAX simulators in time to commence the first scheduled pilot training at the new centre in January 2025, as well as the readiness for two additional simulator bays suitable for either narrow-body or wide-body aircraft simulators,” added AlMheiri.
flydubai’s new full-flight simulator and training facility will lead to cost savings over the first ten years of its operations. The facility primarily caters to flydubai’s pilot training needs as well as its cabin crew training. The increased flexibility in the pilot training schedule and on-demand access to the simulator bays will enable further expansion of the airline’s training capabilities, which can be extended to other airlines in the future.
