Flight Training Adelaide (FTA) / Qantas Group Pilot Academy Diamond DA-40 Stars Pop into CQ Airports

On Tuesday 11 August, several Flight Training Adelaide (FTA) / Qantas Group Pilot Academy Diamond DA-40 Star training aircraft were noted visiting some Central Queensland Airports, all flying out of their Toowoomba-Wellcamp Airport base.

https://www.qantas.com/

DA-40 Stars VH-PQS and VH-YTI flew up to Hervey Bay (Fraser Coast), Bundaberg and Gladstone Airports before later returning to Wellcamp.

While VH-YTU to also flew to Hervey Bay and Bundaberg Airports before heading back to Wellcamp.

And VH-YTG and VH-PQG flew to Bundaberg Airport and back to Wellcamp.

These are some of several Diamond DA-40 Star training aircraft that operate out of Wellcamp with the Qantas Group’s new pilot academy which was officially launched in late January.  Some of the aircraft and have been noted completing airwork and calling into Central Queensland Airports in recent weeks.

The Pilot Academy has the capacity to train up to 250 pilots each year with Qantas reportedly hoping to build a long-term talent pipeline for the airline and its subsidiaries Jetstar and QantasLink plus the wider industry.

The first 34 students commenced training at the new facilities in early January on the single-engine Diamond DA40 and multi-engine DA42 aircraft.  100 students are expected to be in training by the end of 2020.

According to Qantas, the academy has the potential to train as many as 500 pilots each year across two locations including Toowoomba and Mackay – the preferred location for the second academy site.