Commercial pilots may get trained in a year’s time

New Delhi: The total time taken to train a person into a commercial pilot (CPL) is likely to come down to under a year from 18 months for those who don’t have the mandatory physics and mathematics in class 12.
The National Open School (NOS) under the HRD ministry has started online admissions for the two subjects through the year and serious students can qualify and meet the basic criteria in just a month. Earlier, these courses were made available once a year which used to delay the pilot training programme for students. Now the aspirants can take examinations immediately after the admission process.
The school has received 126 admission requests since it started the online programme on October 15, while 265 candidates took the physics and mathematics examinations in the past 10 years.
Besides airlines, aviation academies are also making greater use of the online course. They are asking their students to take the mandatory subjects via NOS to pursue their dream.
Airlines, which have been scouring the globe for pilots, feel the online exams will expedite pilot training and many more can join the workforce in shortest time.
25/11/07 Chanchal Pal Chauhan/Economic Times