ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's national air carrier has signed a contract with an international company to acquire an all-electric motion system, move-by-wire Airbus A320 simulator, said a statement released by the British High Commission in Islamabad on Saturday.
This will be the first A320 full reality simulator in the country, where there are over 670 pilots trained or training on the Airbus A320, the most popular narrow body aircraft in Pakistan.
The contract was signed between Pakistan International Airline's chief executive officer and president of UK-based L3Harris company at a modest ceremony in Islamabad.
"CEO PIA Air Marshal (R) Arshad Malik said it's a big day for PIA and Pakistan Aviation as they have achieved a key milestone," said the statement. "PIA as the national flag carrier always operates in the national interest. This is the most modern and the latest machine in the region and will bolster training standard for the Pakistani pilots as well as contribute in the overall flight safety spectrum of the country."
PIA has 13 Airbus A320s in its fleet which is expected to grow further within a year.
Despite a significant number of pilots requiring mandatory training on the simulator equipment, it was not available in the country and Pakistani pilots had to visit Dubai, Bangkok, Tashkent and Johannesburg for their training.
With about $300 as standard hourly charge to train a single pilot on the equipment, the average training expense went into millions of dollars for over six hundred pilots in the country.
British high commissioner Christian Turner, who was also present at the occasion, said the equipment would build an indigenous capability within Pakistan to train its pilots within the country rather than going abroad.
"It's a real step forward in self-reliance," he added.
President of L3Harris Robin Glover said the acquisition represented a significant milestone both for PIA and Pakistan as they develop inhouse capability for highest standard pilot training on a world class device.
"We look forward for a long-term partnership with PIA in the future," he added.
