Fairs & Exhibitions (F&E), organiser of the Dubai air show, has expanded its inaugural training and simulation pavilion to meet strong international demand.
“We have allocated 25% more space to this pavilion than originally planned after a healthy response both locally and globally,” explained Clive Richardson, Chief Executive, Aerospace Division, F&E.
To date, companies from seven countries across North America, Australia, Scandinavia, Europe and the Middle East have registered for the pavilion – the first of its type at any Dubai air show.
“Training is currently a hot topic within the Middle East which is not surprising given the amount of recruitment being undertaken by the fast-growing carriers of that region and the huge investment being ploughed into civil aviation development.
“While we initially envisaged the pavilion serving the more specific needs of the air defence sector, it would now appear that the military and civil aviation segments are expanding in tandem,” said Richardson.
The Middle East’s expanding local and international carriers are all heavily involved in recruitment with Emirates, the Dubai-headquartered international airline of the UAE recently disclosing it is conducting more than 6,000 recruitment exercises to acquire more cabincrew, flight ops staff, managers, engineers and airport staff.
And Air Traffic Control is another area where training is in strong regional demand as civil aviation authorities move towards the employment of nationals in this sector.
“At Dubai Civil Aviation we have a training plan for nationals for the next five years which should see five Emiratis a year qualifying as air traffic controllers,” explained Mansoor Taher, General Manager, Air Traffic Services, Department of Civil Aviation, Government of Dubai. “The trend is also being repeated throughout the Gulf as airports expand. While most of our training requirements are outsourced, our suppliers will need to expand their own resources and equipment to meet this demand.”
Confirmed exhibitors for the training and simulation pavilion at Dubai 2005, the ninth international aerospace exhibition which will be held in November, include Canada’s leading integrated training solutions provider CAE, the authoritative military equipment, training and simulation publication ETS News, the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority, Britain’s specialist aviation regulator, Scandinavia’s SAS Flight Academy, which operates training facilities in Stockholm and Copenhagen, the Australian International Aviation Training Agency, the USA’s Cubic Corporation, Kaletron of Turkey and the UAE’s Emirates Link and Interfire International.
“Since our recent participation at the Paris air show we have been inundated with enquiries from potential Dubai exhibitors, many emanating from the training and simulation sector,” said Alison Weller, Project Manager, Dubai air show.
To date, companies from 39 countries have signed up for Dubai 2005, which will be held at an expanded Airport Expo Site in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from November 20-24. The show is set to be the largest in its history with site expansion adding another 10,000 square metres of exhibition space.
Dubai 2005 is organised by F&E in conjunction with the Department of Civil Aviation, Government of Dubai and in collaboration with the UAE Armed Forces.
