Multi-Million Dollar, State-of-the-Art Facility Will Be Home To More Than 850 Pilots

On Thursday, AirTran Airways celebrated the grand opening of its new pilot training center in Atlanta (GA). Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin and AirTran Airways Chairman and CEO Joe Leonard officially dedicated the center while flying in a flight simulator.

"The opening of this training center marks a major milestone for our airline," said Leonard. "For the first time in our company's ten-year history, we now have all our pilot training Crew Members and equipment in the same facility. Our pilots will receive the best training with the newest technology."

"The City of Atlanta welcomes AirTran Airways to its new pilot training center in our city," said Mayor Franklin. "We consider the airline to be a very valued member of our community, and we thank them for selecting Atlanta as the site for this new training center, as well as the new customer call center and maintenance hangar that are scheduled to open soon."

The signature element of the facility is the aircraft simulator. The center currently has three simulators operational - two for a Boeing 717 aircraft and the third for a Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft. A fourth simulator will go on line in October, and eventually will include six simulators.

Both recurrent and new hire training for AirTran Airways' more than 850 pilots will take place in the facility. Previously, the airline's pilots trained in locations such as Long Beach, Calif.; St Louis, Mo.; Atlanta and Miami. In addition to the simulators, the facility also includes four state-of-the-art classrooms and a 25-computer lab for the Computer Based Pilot Training (CBT). During a normal week, approximately 60-75 pilots will be able to utilize the facility, including the simulators, the CBT lab and the classrooms.

"This facility will save our company a significant amount of expenses, such as per diem costs," said AirTran Airways President and COO Bob Fornaro. "The proximity to our hub at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport also will make it much easier for our pilots to get to and from the training center."

The center also includes offices that will house all of AirTran Airways' Atlanta-based pilot training Crew Members, which previously were located in a facility separate from the training center. The building is owned by Alteon, a subsidiary of the Boeing Company, and is leased to AirTran Airways.

FMI: www.airtran.com