Pratt & Whitney setting up training centre in Hyderabad

Pratt & Whitney, the aerospace manufacturing subsidiary of US-headquartered United Technologies, is setting up its customer training centre near the GMR international airport here.

The centre is the third such facility for the firm after the US and China, meant for training aircraft engineers and technicians in current and new engine models. The technical workforce of Air India, IndiGo and GoAir would benefit from the operations of the facility, the company said.

Coming up on a two-acre plot on a lease agreement with GMR international airport, the facility is expected to be functional by the third quarter of the financial year 2015-16. However, it did not disclose the level of investment earmarked for setting up the facility.

While the company is expecting an initial 4,000 student days per year for training the crew of existing airline customers, it hopes to raise it to 18,000 student days per year in the long-term, it said.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, Palash Roy Chowdhury, country manager for Pratt & Whitney, said, "facilities like this are the building blocks for the aviation sector growth in the country. And over a period of time, we expect the training centre to service our clients within the landing distance of 4-5 hours, rather than sending them to distant geographies".