Article Posted on : - Nov 02, 2010

MELBOURNE (PTI): The world's first integrated aviation university and training campus will come up in Bangalore with Sydney-based Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) setting up a USD 125 million CAPA AeroPark in the city.

CAPA has inked a deal in Sydney Monday with Bangalore-based real estate developer, Subramanya Construction and Development Company (SCDC), for developing the AeroPark.

"We are excited to launch this new and vital concept in India to support the long term growth of aviation sector.

There is an emerging global shortage of skilled human resources in the industry, which is particularly acute in rapidly emerging markets such as India and neighbouring regions.

"The aviation industries in India and the Gulf alone are expected to see investment of in excess of USD 200 billion over the next decade and availability of skills is critical to support this," Peter Harbison, CAPA Group Executive Chairman said.

CAPA AeroPark will work with the leading global education and training providers. We are delighted to have SCDC as our partners in this venture, our complementary strengths in aviation and major project development are ideally matched to bring CAPA AeroPark to fruition, he added.

K N Balasubramanyam, Chairman of the SCDC Group said "we are delighted to partner with CAPA to bring this unique project to Bangalore, which will be vital for developing a professional, sustainable and safe aviation industry and will help position India as a globally competitive aviation and aerospace hub."

This is our first foray into the private education sector and will soon follow with initiatives in healthcare and hospitality, he added.

It will be world first integrated aviation university and training campus that would be developed on a 50-acre site in the Indian city with satellite academies in Delhi and Mumbai.

There are plans for further roll-out to other metro cities across India, South Asia and the Gulf, CAPA said in a statement.

The AeroPark would offer a university, international standard academies for airline and airport management, pilots, engineers, air traffic controllers, cabin crew and regulators.

Each academy would be developed in partnership with the leading global providers in their field.

The fully developed campus would include state-of-the- art academic facilities together with full flight simulators, a flying school, engineering workshops and laboratories, research centres, accommodation for students and faculty, recreational facilities, a hotel and convention centre.

CAPA AeroPark also has the potential to develop an adjacent aerospace technology and research park in Bangalore, to further enhance cooperation and exchange of knowledge between the facility and industry.

The Master Plan has been guided by an Advisory Council of eminent aviation experts from around the world with backgrounds at the Federal Aviation Administration, International Air Transport Association, International Civil Aviation Organization, US Department of Transportation, Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation, Flight Safety Foundation, UK Civil Aviation Authority, leading universities and international airlines.

CAPA AeroPark Masterplan was developed over more than two years and involved unprecedented research and consultation around the world with airlines, airports, governments, universities and aviation training providers, and involved an exhaustive on-the-ground study of currently available training infrastructure in India.

Bangalore was selected as the location for the campus due to the fact that it is India's aerospace hub with strong credentials in education and research and offers a safe, cosmopolitan lifestyle.

Mercer Consulting rates Bangalore as having the highest quality of life for expatriates in India, allowing CAPA AeroPark to attract the best international faculty.

Bangalore is home to Hindustan Aeronautics, the nation's leading aerospace company, the Airbus Engineering and Design Centre, Boeing;s Research and Technology Centre, several major national research institutes and hundreds of companies involved in aviation technology, design, maintenance and manufacturing.

CAPA AeroPark satellite academies in New Delhi and Mumbai are scheduled to open in the second half of 2011, with the Bangalore campus opening in 2012.