Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain – 05 December 2018: Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, has signed a contract with Etihad Aviation Training (EAT) to offer full flight simulator training to Gulf Air’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner pilots.

The contract strengthens the ties between Gulf Air and Etihad Aviation Group following the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two companies at the Bahrain International Airshow in November.

As part of the agreement, Gulf Air will dry lease EAT’s Full Flight Simulators at the training facility located in Abu Dhabi. The training will be conducted by Gulf Air instructors at the Etihad Training facility.

Gulf Air’s Chief Operations Officer Captain Suhail Abdulhameed Ismaeel said: “We are happy to work hand in hand with our friends in Etihad Aviation Training and use their facilities to train our flying crew. This is the start of ongoing projects with Etihad Airways and Etihad Aviation Training.”

Paolo La Cava, Accountable Director, EAT, said: “Etihad Aviation Training is pleased to welcome Gulf Air instructors and pilots to the comprehensive training facility in Abu Dhabi. 2018 has been a strong year for the organisation since its relaunch in January as a commercially focused operation offering aviation training to a global client base.”

EAT currently boasts 11 Full Flight Simulators (FFS) including three Airbus A320 FFS devices and two Boeing 787 devices. The facility is expanding and will soon open a third B787 FFS device which will be available in Abu Dhabi to third party customers.

In addition to the Abu Dhabi facility, EAT operates a flight training college located in Al Ain offering an extensive cadet pilot training programme.