Cebu Pacific invests $25 M for pilot training school

MANILA, Philippines — Cebu Pacific is investing $25 million for a pilot training program to meet expansion requirements.

“Over the next five years, Cebu Pacific will be investing $25 million to train 250 cadet pilots to become full-fledged first officers and eventually captains. The program will allow us to train homegrown Filipino pilots with best-in-class international standards,” Cebu Pacific president and chief executive officer Lance Gokongwei said during the launch of the Cadet Pilot Program held yesterday.

The program is being conducted in partnership with Flight Training Adelaide (FTA) which provides customized aviation training solutions.

Under the program, candidates will undergo a 56-week integrated flying training, flight theory and education course to become licensed commercial pilots, with 52 weeks to be spent at FTA in Adelaide in Australia and the remaining four weeks to be used for training to obtain a pilot’s license under the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines in Manila.

The program is open to Filipinos who are college graduates, proficient in English and have passports valid for at least two years prior to the start of the program.

Some 16 candidates will be chosen per batch, with Cebu Pacific sending three batches of cadet pilots per year.

The screening process starts with an online screening, followed by an on-site screening for core skills and pilot aptitude tests among other examinations with a fee of US$425 (P17,000) to be charged.

 “The candidates need not worry about shelling-out money for tuition to flying school to achieve their dream. Cebu Pacific will shoulder the cost first and expose candidates to one of the best pilot training facilities in the world,” Gokongwei said.

Successful cadet pilots would be guaranteed employment with Cebu Pacific after graduation.

Once employed with Cebu Pacific, they would be asked to pay for the cost of the program through salary deduction over a maximum of 10 years.

Training for pilots is costly with fees ranging from P2 million to P3.8 million for a 12-month program. – With Rudy Santos