Budget carrier Norwegian is entering a co-operation with flight schools in Scandinavia and Spain to secure its future pilot corps. The airline is collaborating with Lund University’s school of aviation in Sweden, as well as OSM Aviation Academy in both Sweden and Norway. It is also partnering the Danish Center Air Pilot Academy and the Spanish-based FTEJerez. “With this new agreement, we get the opportunity to get to know the cadets during their education,” says Norwegian people director Guro Poulsen. “This also allows those who are hired by Norwegian to start working immediately while receiving a type-rating course for the aircraft the company operates, as well as other necessary theory and advanced training courses.” Norwegian says the pilot cadets it “believes will fit into the company” might be offered positions immediately after completing their studies. Pilot training takes around 20 months. The carrier says the partnerships are important because the industry is forecasting a rising demand for pilots – as a result of retirements and increased travel – while costs for training “act as a barrier”.<br/>
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Romanian carrier Animawings has taken delivery of its – and the country’s – first Airbus A220, with the arrival of a -300 leased from US-based Azorra. The initial twinjet (YR-CHR), powered by Pratt & Whitney PW1500G engines, was flown from Montreal to Bucharest, via Reykjavik, on 13 December. Animawings had disclosed earlier this year that it intended to expand with A220s after Greek operator Aegean Airlines sold its majority share of the company to a travel firm. Azorra has direct orders for 22 A220-300s and has received two of them. It also agreed to take a dozen of the type previously operated by EgyptAir. The lessor – which is providing four A220s to Animawings – says the aircraft are being sourced from its direct order with Airbus. “This advanced aircraft enables us to commit to delivering connectivity to sought-after destinations such as Dubai, Cluj, Iasi, Oradea, Paris, Larnaca or Stockholm,” says Animawings co-owner Marius Pandel. He says the A220 enables the carrier to modernise its operation and “deliver exceptional travel experiences” to its passengers.<br/>
In July the government announced the renewal of Congo Airways' fleet with the acquisition of three Airbus A320s and - according to government spokesman Patrick Muyaya (minister of communication and media} - this will enable the airline ‘…to resolve the dual issues relating to the loss of the AOC and IATA approval by the deadline of 16 September’. He explains that this will strengthen Congo Airways' operational capacity, unlocking its untapped potential as ‘the revival of the company is essential, given its significant impact on national sovereignty, the mobility of people and goods, and the country’s economic and social life’. There was originally a national project by the government to create a new airline but a consensus view, the spokesman continued, was that ‘it should not be to the detriment of Congo Airways’. This was soon followed by the emergency plan - and the rental of leased aircraft. In addition, the Congolese authorities decided not to invest in Corsair, despite the launch of its Brazzaville-Paris service, as the priority was to continue Congo Airways’ operations. Equatorial Congo Airlines (ECAir) resumed flights from Brazzaville to Pointe-Noire and Ollombo on 16 May this year.<br/>