Eighteen new pilots from Ethiopia and Chad have graduated this month from the Ethiopian Aviation Academy. They were awarded their wings by Ethiopian Airlines Chief Operating Officer Mr. Tewolde G.Mariam (pictured at right). The class included 12 Ethiopians and six Chadians, one of whom is a woman.According to information provided by Ethiopian Airlines, the new pilots successfully completed two-years of commercial pilot training to earn their Instrument and Multi-Engine Ratings. The training program is comprised of 1,000 hours of classroom instruction and at least 250 hours of practical flight training, on both single and multi-engine trainer aircraft.
The new graduates bring the total number of pilots trained by the Ethiopian Aviation Academy to 822, of whom 522 are Ethiopian nationals. The academy also has trained pilots from many other countries, mostly nationals of countries elsewhere in Africa and the Middle East, and a few from Asia and Europe. The Ethiopian Aviation Academy, which was begun in 1964, trains aircraft technicians, cabin staff and other aviation professionals in addition to pilots.
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