Ethiopian Graduates Nineteen Pilots - 15 July, 2010

The Ethiopian Aviation Academy graduates nineteen trainee pilots on July 15, 2010. The trainees have completed the commercial pilot training course in Instrument and Multi-Engine Ratings. Among the graduates seven are sponsored by Ethiopian while eight are from Chad and one each from Congo Brazzaville, D.R. Congo Kinshasa, Kenya and Italy.

The pilot trainees have taken two years training comprising of six hundred ninety five hours of class instruction, two hundred hours of practical flight training (both on single and multi-engine aircraft) and sixty hours on Flight Training Devices. They have also attained the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) Level 4 English Proficiency requirement during their training.

Today’s graduates will bring the total number of pilots from the Ethiopian Aviation Academy to 900 since its inception in 1964. Among the total number of graduates 584 are Ethiopian nationals and the remaining 316 are nationals from different countries mainly from Africa, the Middle East and a few from Asia and Europe.

The Ethiopian Aviation Academy plays a pivotal role in the development of commercial aviation in Africa through the training of pilots, aircraft technicians, cabin staff and other professionals.

About Ethiopian

Ethiopian Airlines, one of the largest and fastest growing airlines in Africa, made its maiden flight to Cairo in 1946. With the recent addition of flight services to Pointe Noire, Ethiopian provides dependable services to 39 cities in Africa and a total of 59 international destinations spanning throughout four continents.

Ethiopian won the NEPAD Transport Infrastructure Excellence Awards 2009 on November 25, 2009 and "Airline of the Year" award from the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) on November 24, 2009, bringing the total Awards honored since January 2009 to five.

In August, 2008, Ethiopian won “the 2008 Corporate Achievement Award” of Aviation & Allied Business for setting the pace towards the development and growth of the African aviation industry.

Ethiopian is also the first African carrier to win the 2008 Brussels Airport Company Award in recognition of its distinguished long haul operations witnessed through the introduction of new routes, new products, and close cooperation with Brussels Airport in marketing activities.

Ethiopian was the winner of the ‘2008 Best Airline in Africa Award’ at the African Travel Award ceremony in Lagos, Nigeria, for its excellent network and convenient connections in Africa.