Prospective pilots can get some one-the-ground training before taking to the air thanks to pair of state-of-the-art flight simulators at College of New Caledonia's (CNC) Nechako campus in Vanderhoof.
They're the centrepiece of CNC aviation business diploma program that took off earlier this month. When they're not learning to fly, students enrolled in the 20-month program also take on a full slate of business courses - marketing, human resources development, business law, accounting, management, statistics, and business information systems.
By the end, they'll have earned a private pilot's license, a commercial pilot's license with a float rating and an aviation business diploma.
"This is a chance for students to train for a rewarding career in the north," said Ty Roberts, CNC's program planner for the program. "The prospects for aviation pilots appear to be improving greatly for the next five to 10 years."
Roberts said there is a shortage of airline pilots in mid-level operations and it's predicted there will be a shortage of 300,000 pilots worldwide and the program's business aspect will give students a further leg up.
"They're contributing, just not through flying, but in useful management roles," Roberts said. "More and more companies are specifying pilots should have a diploma or degree along with their pilot's license."
Tuition is $62,700 which includes $50,000 for flight school with Guardian Aerospace, which includes 200 hours of flying as well as 80 hours in the two Redbird Flight Simulators. The remainder of the cost is college tuition.
"While it's an expensive career to get into, it provides absolutely excellent earning capacity," said Roberts.
Prince George and Vanderhoof-based Guardian Aerospace is the only flight school operator in northern B.C. and will provide the flight training.
At a combined cost of $165,000, the simulators were funded by Western Economic Diversification Canada, Northern Development Initiative Trust and the Nechako-Kitimat Development Fund.
"Our government understands that a productive aviation industry requires skilled workers to remain competitive," said Cariboo-Prince George MP Dick Harris.
