ETIHAD Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has welcomed another group of Emirati graduates. A total of 237 graduates, recognized in a ceremony at the Al Raha Beach Hotel in Abu Dhabi recently, comprised 15 UAE national cadet pilots and 29 cadet pilots of other nationalities; 24 graduate managers, five of whom completed the Finance Development Program; and 169 contact center staff, including 35 Omani nationals. Etihad Airways is renowned as one of the UAE's leading Emirati employers and has been widely praised for its Emiratization recruitment program. The airline works closely with the Ministry of Presidential Affairs, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Abu Dhabi Tawteen Council, HCT, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi University, and other organizations to further enhance its ability to recruit nationals. UAE nationals currently represent 22.4 percent of the Etihad Airways core workforce. James Hogan, Etihad Airways' President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “The most valuable asset of any organization is its people and this is why staff development is such a significant focus for us. Through our innovative Emiratization program, we work hard to develop our UAE national staff, and to that end, we continue to invest in state-of-the-art educational facilities.” Since Etihad Airways began its Emiratization program in 2007, 229 cadet pilots, 127 graduate managers, and 206 contact center agents have passed through the Etihad Training Academy and are now deployed in posts across the airline. The graduating cadet pilots completed an 18-month training course and have now joined the airline as second officers. During their training, cadets must complete 900 hours of classroom tuition and 201 hours of flight training in single and multi-engine aircrafts. Cadets must also pass the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority's technical and flying exams to receive a UAE Airline Transport Pilot License (ATPL). On receipt of their ATPL, cadet pilots join Etihad Airways as second officers and undergo specific training on their allocated aircraft using the airline's cutting-edge flight simulators. After approximately six months, the second officers will qualify as first officers. Fahad Abdelkarim Fahad Mohamed Al Jesmi, one of the graduating cadet pilots, said of his experience: “I have always had a passion for flying and traveling to new places that I have never been. But dreams always remain dreams unless one works hard to achieve them, and that was what I did by joining Etihad Airways' Cadet Pilot Program.” – SG
