A succession of trips to India has consolidated a growing relationship between Hamilton-based aviation training provider CTC and the country’s aviation regulatory authority, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Indian airlines, particularly the fast growing low cost carriers (LCC).
CTC Aviation Training (NZ) CEO Ian Calvert says he first visited India in 2008 as part of an aviation trade expo to explore opportunities for pilot recruitment but the time wasn’t quite right.
“At that stage there were thousands of licensed pilots in India and no job opportunities. However we could see the potential for training Indian pilots and kept engaged with our contacts.”
Calvert says the organisation could see the need building as Indian airlines started ordering more aircraft and the DGCA took a hard line approach to fraudulent licence scams and some poor overseas training that meant a large number of pilots were not employable.
“The DGCA wanted systems that offered greater credibility, which New Zealand can offer, so we sent in briefing papers outlining what and how we could achieve that for them.”
Calvert says the company’s most recent trip to India in June with Prime Minister John Key and a 25-strong trade mission including Trade Minister Tim Groser helped consolidate the burgeoning relationships.
“We managed to add in some top level meetings we hadn’t had much luck with before. These airlines were suddenly asking for full proposals and what practical steps needed to be taken to make them work.”
NZTE support has provided invaluable on ground personal contact and opened doors for CTC.
Calvert says companies looking to do business in India should take the advice of experts in the field and learn the culture and way of doing business.
“You need to be able to identify the signals that signify a genuine conversation and don’t let your judgement be clouded by preconceived ways of doing things.
“Don’t rush it,” he says.
CTC are working on a five year strategy that will initially establish an AB-initio cadet programme that can either train pilots or take licence holders and put them through further training or provide the Indian airlines with pilots from else where in the world.
Each AB-initio course would be worth between US$85 - US$90,000 so with four or five airlines each interested in sending upwards of 70 students annually, the benefits to CTC are significant.
“It also gives us stability because it spreads our market away from just relying on Europe. That’s gives us more strength when it comes to the topsy-turvy world of airline and aviation economics.”
Calvert says one of the key learnings from the visits to India is that business becomes personal.
“It’s not like in New Zealand where we tend to separate the two. In India they don’t see it as dealing with a company but as dealing with a person and will invite you to dinners and possibly family functions. Often we don’t see this as formal enough and tend to get out our diaries to schedule meetings.
“But the more you push, the less likely it is to happen.”
