Uganda Airlines has finally handed over the first cockpit crew sets to Bombardier for training a head of the carrier’s comeback mid this year.
The first set of eight pilots are reported to have been training in France while another group has been sent at the manufacturer’s site at Mirabel just outside Montreal, according to 256businessnews .com
Uganda Airlines will be receiving four Bombardier CRJ-900 series that will form the core of its regional fleet. A pair of Aibus’ rejigged A330 dubbed the -800neo is expected to arrive towards the end of 2020 to serve the long haul services.
Twenty four of an eventual complement of 36 pilots have been recruited so far and will undergo training at different levels depending on their current professional status.
“Those that already qualified on the CRJ-900 will undertake recurrent training while those rated on different models of the CRJ will be going through a differences course to get rated for the CRJ-900,” said a source close to the Uganda Airlines project team.
He added that it is those pilots transitioning from other aircraft types that will undergo the full type rating course that can take up to 28 days before they are qualifies to fly the new type as first officers.
Training for the pilots was supposed to start last November but was held up by delays in concluding employment contracts.
Delays in recruiting key position holders are responsible for a shift from the initial April 2019 launch of commercial operations to June.
Sources however, say delivery of the first aircraft will go ahead as planned around February 23 followed by others in March, May, July and September.
There have been concerns about delays in locking up a finance deal for the purchases but President Museveni has assured the team that he will make the money available at AfriExim Bank, the successor of the PTA Bank has offered a loan at a rate of just under six percent but the cabinet has asked the finance ministry to vet cheaper alternative.
