Airbus sets up new campus for pilot training in Toulouse

European aircraft maker Airbus will build a new campus for training and flight operations in its home port of Toulouse. The Toulouse site, the only center in Europe to provide training on all the European aircraft manufacturer’s programs, will accommodate 600 people starting in 2026.

Airbus forecasts that more than 40,000 new aircraft could enter service between 2024 and 2043 to meet future demand for more flights. In 20 years, to fly and maintain all those aircraft or serve and help passengers, about 600,000 pilots, nearly 700,000 mechanics, and almost a million flight attendants would also be required.

Largest of Airbus 15 pilot training sites

So, these must be trained first. That’s why Airbus is giving the go-ahead this month in Toulouse for the construction of a new 16,000 m² building that, by 2026, will bring together on the same site about 600 employees from all Airbus Training Services activities in France, as well as the Air Operations teams and Navblue, the Airbus subsidiary that specializes in flight operations solutions and services.

The center will be the largest of Airbus’s 15 pilot training sites worldwide, operating 43 full-flight simulators (FFS) together.

10,000 trainees a year

Once in use, the campus will have seven simulators, including an A350 simulator. Airbus describes the new campus as unique in Europe because of its proximity to aircraft assembly lines and customer support activities. It also enables training in all the European aircraft manufacturer’s programs, from the oldest, such as the A300 or the A380, to the A350.

According to Maia Kuilenberg, head of training services at Airbus, the campus will also be a laboratory for experimenting with virtual reality (VR) and computer-based training. VR can be used, for example, to allow pilots to come and practice procedures, such as the checklist sequence before takeoff. The campus aims to train 10,000 trainees a year.

Pilot Cadet Training Program

In March 2022, Airbus inaugurated the Airbus Flight Academy Europe (AFAE), a new campus in Angoulême. The new facility provided AFAE, the first flight school to deliver the Airbus Pilot Cadet Training Program in Europe, with an increased capacity to train up to 200 pilot cadets simultaneously.

The Airbus Pilot Cadet Training Program is open to high school graduates over 18 worldwide. Candidates must undergo online and on-site screening tests before being eligible for training, including 750+ hours of ground school and 200 hours of practical flight and simulator training.