Rex opens new AAPA campus

Rex established the AAPA (a wholly owned subsidiary of Regional Express Holdings Limited) as an in-house training school in late 2007 in the wake of the widespread pilot shortage that swept through the airline industry.

The new Wagga $12 million AAPA campus is a state of the art facility featuring an academic centre, flight training centre, on-campus accommodation, dining and recreational facilities.

The new facilities were unveiled in a lavish ceremony on May 27 that was attended by the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, local and state government representatives, and representatives from CASA, Airservices Australia, and Piper Aircraft, Inc.. From its new Wagga campus AAPA will train up to 200 pilots annually.

“The buildings are the realisation of a dream that began about two and a half years ago,” Managing Director of Rex and Chairman of the AAPA, Jim Davis, said while opening the new campus. “It was a dream formed out of some pretty hard times – the pilot shortage of 2007, which threatened the very existence of Rex. It was a dream that envisaged the Rex pilot cadet program to train pilots in the Rex flying school.

“We’ve grown over the last two years and as well as training Rex cadets we now aim to train pilots from airlines all over the world, and train them to the highest possible standard. We think this will become the best facility of its type in this part of the world.”

Officially opening the campus, Minister Albanese said the new AAPA facilities fill a great void in the Australian pilot training market.

“This facility embodies what we’re talking about in the Aviation White Paper – released in December last year – in terms of the skills and training agenda that’s so vital for the aviation industry,” Albanese said.

“It is a facility that is extraordinary. When you’re talking about uplifting people’s skills, the environment in which they learn is absolutely critical. I know that every single student that comes through these facilities will be more than satisfied that they’re working with state of the art equipment.”

The AAPA has earmarked more than $25 million for ongoing investment initiatives into equipment and facilities at its new Wagga campus through to 2014.

For more images from the opening ceremony and tour click here.