Overseas firms to set up more pilot training schools in China

Foreign companies are making hay in China's aviation training market by setting up more pilot training schools and other facilities to cope with the drastic shortage of pilots in the rapidly expanding aviation sector.

Currently, only a few major Chinese airlines have well-established pilot training systems. Many medium-sized and smaller airlines are yet to set up their own pilot training mechanisms and lack training facilities such as flight simulators.

Avia Solutions Group, a Lithuania-based aviation services company, plans to establish a pilot training center in China, which is expected to open in 2020. It will provide training services for existing pilots and for smaller airlines that do not have simulators, the company said.