Cork's pilot training academy marks growth from a single aircraft to 26-strong fleet
At the 30th anniversary of the Atlantic Flight Training Academy were: Angelo Currao, pilot recruitment manager with Ryanair; Ireland South MEP Sean Kelly; Michael O'Brien, board director of safety at Ryanair Holdings Plc and Ryanair's former chief pilot; and Mark Casey, CEO and head of training at AFTA.
More than 100 pilots from across the world were in Cork recently to mark the Atlantic Flight Training Academy's 30 years in business.
AFTA was founded by Captain Mark Casey in 1995 with a single aircraft, Piper Seneca (EI-CMT), and three decades later, the flight training school reached the significant milestone of training 2,800 pilots, expanding its fleet to 26 aircraft and investing in multiple flight simulators, as well as three survey aircraft.
Since its foundation, AFTA has delivered a variety of pilot training mentorship programmes in partnership with leading world airlines, including Ryanair, Air Astana, as well as, AFTA’s operator partners, ASL Airlines Ireland, VistaJet and Globe Air.
AFTA also trains commercial pilots for the airline industry in partnership with Munster Technological University (MTU). The event to mark the anniversary included the graduation ceremony for the class of 2023-2024 cadets.
Captain Casey praised and acknowledged the support of AFTA’s staff and partners over the past 30 years in business, referring to some memorable personal business advice he received early in his own career, while working for Richard Branson — "Value the people who work for you."
"It must be said that there is no doubt that AFTA would not be at the scale it is without the success, support and growth of our airline partners over the past 30 years," he said.
"The aviation powerhouse that is Ryanair continues to go from strength to strength. Ryanair has been a huge supporter of AFTA since its inception, and we are ever grateful for the continued cadet programmes we offer as a partner school in the Ryanair future flyer academy. We have been joined at the hip for 30 years, and it is often said internally that we share the same DNA."
Addressing the recent graduates, he said: "Becoming a pilot requires determination, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to excellence. You should be incredibly proud of what you have achieved.
This is just the beginning of an exciting career, and we have no doubt you will go on to accomplish great things.”
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