Air India to set up flying training organisation in Maharashtra's Amravati, make it operational by early 2026

The company claims that the flying training organisation, which will be the first by any Indian airline in the country, will be South Asia's largest such facility and it will have 31 single-engine aircraft and three twin-engine aircraft for training.

Air India said the target of its FTO will be to operationalise 180 commercial pilots every year, adding that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)-licensed FTO at Amravati’s Belora airport will be operational by the first quarter of FY26.

Air India's MD and CEO, Campbell Wilson, said, "The FTO at Amravati will be a significant step towards making Indian aviation more self-reliant and offering more opportunities to the youth in India to fulfill their ambitions of flying as pilots."

"The young pilots coming out of this FTO will fuel Air India’s ambition of becoming a world-class airline, as it moves ahead in its transformation journey," Wilson added.

The Tata Group-owned airline was awarded a tender by the Maharashtra Airport Development Company to establish and operate this DGCA-licensed FTO in Amravati for a period of 30 years.

Sunil Bhaskaran, Director of Air India Aviation Academy, said, "The FTO will be operational by Q1 FY26 and offer aspiring pilots an opportunity to undergo training with world-class curricula at par with best-in-class global schools."

"We are delighted to be playing a part in building the aviation infrastructure India needs as one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets and to support the government’s vision for an Atmanirbhar Bharat,” he said.