Maintenance focus pays off for Australian training centre

It is not just the boomerang that keeps coming back – customers are returning in droves to training specialist Aviation Australia. The company, formed by the Queensland state government as part of its drive to be seen as a centre of excellence for aerospace, is offering maintenance and engineering training as well as cabin crew and flight operations courses.

CEO Paul Bredereck says the company is unique because it is a not-for-profit organisation - all profits are reinvested in course material and services. “The Queensland government identified the skills shortage to support the growing needs for the aerospace industry in the state,” says Bredereck. “We were set up in 2001 to increase the skilled workforce with 21^st century capability.”

The results were remarkable. While many training providers were offering services for flight crew, there were few looking at the engineering sector. “Its was like they were happy to train pilots, but for maintenance they would take kids straight out of school and hope they would learn by osmosis,” says Bredereck.

As countries around the world adopted the EASA regulations (Part 147) replacing domestic standards, the niche market identified by Aviation Australia took off. “We couldn’t really survive just looking after the Australian requirement. We are in partnership with organisations like Airbus and Boeing and were able to offer the training all over the Asia Pacific area and even as far as the Middle East.

Last year some 6,000 students passed through the Aviation Australia programmes either at the company’s Brisbane base or through outreach courses in customer’s own countries. “We work closely with customers to determine their training requirements and the most suitable delivery methods,” he says.

At Asian Aerospace, the company is keen to show the benefits of visiting Queensland. It’s a great place, with a great lifestyle,” Bredereck says. Away from the beautiful beaches, the ice-cold beers (being demonstrated on the booth each afternoon of Asian Aerospace) and the aviation-friendly authorities, the company’s technical training facilities include 16 classrooms, five workshops a 1750sqm hangar and aircraft including small helicopters, light-twin fixed-wings, a Fokker F-28 and a Boeing 727, which are all kept operational. Regional clients include Dragonair, Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong Airlines and Hong Kong Express.

Source: Flight Daily News