Lismore’s under-utilised airport will soon be revitalised by the establishment of a new international aviation academy to train commercial pilots. 

While world air travel is mostly on pause due to coronavirus restrictions, the new training academy will place Lismore on the map, poised to take advantage of the future predicted growth in the need for skilled aviation staff. 

Lismore Mayor Isaac Smith today announced the new partnership with international aviation company Airways Aviation.

“This is very exciting news for our city and will give our local economy a significant boost and bring an opportunity for domestic and international students to come here,” he said.

Mayor Smith said once coronavirus restrictions were ended, the idea was to begin with 20 students, and increase the potential to hundreds of students later. 

“It’s the beginning of what could be a big thing for Lismore,” he said. 

“This is a project that council staff have been working on to maximise the economic benefits from the airport. This includes securing a Federal Government grant at the last election to invest $4.5 million in a Instrument Landing System so that we could attract pilot training schools.”

The new academy will work in partnership with Southern Cross University, which already runs aviation training out of its Gold Coast campus. 

“Now we can deliver the same training in Lismore and make it equally as successful," Mayor Smith said.

“We can offer commercial career driven opportunities for students.”

Airways Aviation will lease part of the Lismore Airport Terminal for commercial pilot training while its students study a Bachelor of Business Aviation Management at Southern Cross University.

Airways Aviation, which already has training academies on the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, will join the Northern Rivers Aero Club, Fast Aviation and TAFE NSW which offer aviation training at the airport.

Airways Aviation founder Romy Hawatt said his company had the largest training fleet of diamond aircraft in the world, with a large Airways Aviation Academy (ESMA) already set up in France. 

“We have 50 aircraft in our fleet and we offer training in multi disciplines, from pilot training to engineering and cabin crew,” he said.

“We see a unique opportunity in Lismore. It’s a rural location, with no burden of controlled airspace and it’s a large training area. 

“It’s hard to find places like that to train pilots in the world.”

Council and Aviation Australia are now working on the design and build of the new academy at Lismore airport. 

Mr Hawatt said it could be on the cards for the company to bring some of their flight simulators to the new facility as part of the strategic planning of the new design.

Considering that Virgin Australia are currently in receivership, Mr Hawatt also saw an “accelerated and unprecedented demand in the need for aviation industry professionals.”

“Virgin airlines will not be allowed to fail,” Mr Hawatt said.

“Qantas can’t be the only airline - we need competition and a number of airlines are lined up to bid for the assets of Virgin and I believe that airline will spring back stronger than ever before.

“The world’s population is rushing toward 10 billion people and the upwardly mobile percentage is growing too, and they will be looking to travel by air.

“All goods, services and deliverables rely on airports –and they are essential for keeping the economy running.

“Aviation is a key industry and the largest feeder industry in the world, from tourism to cargo.

“Major courier companies like FedX own the largest fleets of airlines in the world – cargo is a massive part of aviation and a growing part of it that delivers goods in real time.

“We provide the disciplines, skills and career opportunities to feed into that industry.

R”esearch by Boeing has found that over the next 20 years that an additional 804,000 new civil aviation pilots will be needed, 769,000 new maintenance technicians and 914,000 new cabin crew.”

Mr Hawatt said there would mostly be Cessna 172 and 182 aircraft flying in the Lismore fleet.

“We have small, light category aircraft – there are no big heavy aircraft operating here,” he said. 

The Airways Aviation Group currently offer a range of certified Australian CASA, European EASA, ICAO and IATA courses designed to meet the rapidly increasing demand for Commercial Pilots, Aircraft Maintenance Engineers, Avionics, Ground Handlers and Cabin Crew.