Airline Jet2.com has opened a multi-million pound new training centre in Cheadle, near Manchester Airport. Bosses said the £8.5m centre would build on the success of the company's first training facility near Bradford, which opened in 2014.
A dozen new jobs have been created and the airline said the centre would 'underpin its growth ambitions by training thousands of colleagues every year'. The facility is a 'bespoke centre of excellence' for new and current pilots, engineers, cabin crew and ground operations staff.
Housed over three storeys, it features full and fixed-base flight simulators, cabin crew trainer units and engineering training devices to enact real-life scenarios, together with computer training rooms, classrooms and briefing rooms.
Jet2 plc also revealed it has ordered 98 Airbus A320/A321 aircraft, and order it added which could eventually extend up to 146 new planes.
Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, said: "Today's exciting announcement is the latest stage on our growth journey and is another demonstration of our commitment to investing in our successful business.
"This fantastic new facility complements our existing training centre and enables us to train and develop our award-winning teams as we grow, so that our flight deck, cabin crew, ground operations and engineering teams can continue to provide the first-class experience that our customers have come to know and love."
It comes as the latest ATOL data published by the Civil Aviation Authority shows Jet2holidays is now the UK's largest tour operator, overtaking Tui.
The data shows Jet2holidays is licensed to provide package holidays to 5.9 million people in the year to the end of September. That's compared with 5.3 million for Tui. Jet2holidays meanwhile said it would operate its largest summer programme this year, featuring 65 destinations including flights from Manchester Airport T2.
The Leeds-based company, launched in 2007, was widely praised for its handling of customer refunds for trips cancelled due to coronavirus restrictions.
Tour operators determine how many passengers they are licensed to provide package holidays to based on a combination of bookings already received and expected future sales.
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