TrainAir Plus… A Path to Growing Your Training Center

It is anticipated that over the next 20 years, the aviation industry will need to fill 3,507 jobs a day to meet the shortage of skilled aviation workers that will grow exponentially as the industry continues to grow.

This growth comes at a time when the industry is already struggling to fill existing positions as older employees retire, and opportunities for training new candidates is limited. To meet industry needs, it is estimated that 3,507 jobs a day will need to be filled over the next two decades, including:

• 67 new pilots a day
• 13 new ATC a day
• 113 new maintenance technicians a day

While the shortage of aviation workers is troubling for the industry, it does present a tremendous opportunity for aviation training centers who are ready to step up and expand their operations. This is not something that most can accomplish successfully within a relatively short time. However, being a TrainAir Plus member can assist in this endeavor with access to information and learning needed to help training centers meet the demand for training the next generation of aviation workers.

Strategically Preparing to Grow Your Training Center

Before embarking on growing your training center, you must have a strategic plan. Taking advantage of the management courses that TrainAir Plus members present can help prepare those who currently or will in the future establish, manage or operate an aviation training organization, including directors, managers, department heads, and operations managers.

Great examples of courses that can assist training centers in developing their growth strategies include two upcoming TrainAir Plus courses this fall occurring in the Netherlands:

• Training Managers Course (TMC), which addresses the operational challenges of managing an aviation training organization, including meeting ICAO standards for operation, quality management, and training delivery. This course prepares participants to meet the standards for quality and operation to become eligible for ICAO recognition.
• Managing Aviation Training Intelligence (MATI), which is designed to assist Civil Aviation Training Center managers in making decisions in managing all types of available training intelligence. This course addresses what training organizations need to consult and evaluate in sculpting their strategic growth plan to meet the industry’s growth projections with qualified personnel, including:

• Establishing strategic, operational and implementation plans
• Managing KPIs for training operations
• Utilizing advanced leadership practices
• Implementing an integrated training management system

Benefits of Being a TrainAir Plus Member

This includes tools that can help build capacity for training centers and facilitate growth to meet the current and future needs driven by the aviation industry’s exponential growth like access to over 210 ICAO-recognized courses and assessments through TAC (Training Assessments and Consultancy).

In 2018 alone, over 380 ICAO-recognized classroom courses were delivered across all regions with over 4,500 trainees completing these courses.

And over 5,000 participants attended events organized and hosted by
TrainAir Plus members.

Membership can also bring additional revenue streams to your training center through profits from course creation and presenting training. With all this considered, becoming a TrainAir Plus member could be a significant key to grow your training center strategically.

References and Additional Reading

• Additional Articles on ICAO's TrainAir Plus program (2018 - today), by Dawn M. Turner, Ulrich Scholten, Dennis Vasilev et al.
• TRAINAIR PLUS Programme description (retrieved July 2019), by ICAO