China needs over 10,000 pilots
Chinese airlines will need an additional 10,000 airline pilots over the next five years, and the figure expected to reach 18,000 by 2015, said a senior official of the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC).
Many Chinese airlines have begun looking for pilots overseas.
Shenzhen Airlines alone has recruited nearly 60 pilots from Brazil, Russia, the US and other countries, Beijing Daily reported.
CAAC deputy director Wang Changshun called for the training of more pilots to meet civil aviation demand, which is growing at a rate of 12 to 14 percent annually.
Zheng Xiaoyong, president of Civil Aviation Flight University of China, also said China needed an average 3,000 pilots each year over the next 10 years.
However, the country is capable of training only 2,000 pilots each year.
30/09/06 Xinhua/India eNews.com