First Officer Candidates Will Spend Up To 320 Hours In Them

Airline Transport Professionals (ATP) last week received the first of 16 new glass-cockpit, G1000-equipped DA40 Diamond Stars to be used exclusively in ATP's new Direct Track extension of the Airline Career Pilot Program. These 16 new aircraft will be used to train first officer candidates for the competitive regional airline job market.

All 16 of the Diamond DA40s will be equipped with Garmin's G1000 integrated avionics system that integrates all primary flight, navigation, communication, terrain, traffic, and Engine Instrumentation and Crew Alerting System (EICAS) data on two 10.4-inch, high definition LCDs. Direct Track students will benefit from up to 320 hours of glass-cockpit DA40 flight time, preparing them for First Officer positions with Regional Airlines that fly glass cockpit regional jets.

"We are pleased to see that ATP is staying in the Garmin family as it transitions in its training program from GNS 430-equipped aircraft to a fleet featuring our G1000 glass cockpit, which will better prepare new pilots for careers using glass cockpits in commercial airliners and newer corporate aircraft," said Gary Kelley, Garmin's Director of Marketing.

Direct Track adds 320 hours of EFIS cross-country experience and 40 hours of CRJ-200 FTD experience to the Airline Career Pilot Program's 140 hours of nationwide multi-engine cross-country experience and actual Citation jet IOE. By gaining valuable glass cockpit experience, ATP graduates will have a decided advantage during the transition from reciprocating aircraft to state-of-the-art Regional Jets. Direct Track will be offered initially in Jacksonville, Florida, and Dallas, Texas, with additional locations planned as the DA40 fleet grows.

"Not only will the G1000-equipped DA40s better prepare pilots for the transition to glass cockpit jets, but most importantly they will improve safety with the Terrain Awareness and Warning System and Traffic Information System," said Jim Koziarski, ATP's Vice President of Flight Operations.

FMI: www.ALLATPS.com