The Irish pilot-training firm at the centre of a financial row that has left trainee pilots stranded in Florida said this evening it was continuing to do everything it could to source alternative training courses for its students.
Some 80 students, 34 of them Irish, paid up to €86,000 to train with the Pilot Training College (PTC), a Waterford-based flight school.
They had been receiving training in the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT), which had a contract with the Waterford school, but, due to a financial dispute, the Florida centre has stopped their training.
In a statement this evening, PTC said of the 180 students in Florida, 70 already had their training taken care of by their respective airlines.
“In relation to the remaining 110 students PTC has been in dialogue with CAE Oxford Aviation Academy over the past several days in an effort to formulate an alternative training facility for most PTC students in light of the cancellation of the training contract between PTC and the FIT,” it said.
“A detailed analysis of all student training records has been undertaken by both PTC and CAE Oxford Aviation Academy and a formula has been arrived at on a student by student basis.”
PTC said the first group of 39 students had been informed of the details of this plan and that "they would not be financially impacted by the difficulties in PTC Florida due to a credit being offered by CAE on the initial deposit amount that the students have already paid."
“The remaining 71 students have been categorised in groups depending on their stage of training and performance to date. Before the end of this week, PTC will let students know individually whether CAE Oxford Aviation Academy intends to make them an offer to continue their training. The students who receive such an offer and who intend to avail themselves of it will be invited to contact CAE Oxford Aviation Academy directly and to enter into a new training contract. This process will take a few more days to run its course,” the statement continued.
PTC said it had furnished the Irish Aviation Authority with all documentation required to confirm all training records are in order.
It added that while CAE will offer a “moderate discount” to offset part of the amount already paid for the course, “PTC recognises and deeply regrets that a number of students will incur additional costs in having their training completed as a result of the ongoing dispute between FIT and PTC”
The firm said it was doing everything possible to “mitigate any losses”
Earlier, Fianna Fáil’s transport spokesman said the Government has a “moral obligation” to ensure the Irish trainee pilots stranded in Florida can complete their training at another flight school.
Timmy Dooley said students were “still stranded in the US unsure of what to do next, having paid thousands of euro for their training”.
“These students have been put under enormous financial stress and strain over the past three weeks and they are still in the dark about what happened to the training course they paid for in the first place and what options there are for them now.”
He said the issue raised “serious questions” for the Government and the Irish Aviation Authority and it was clear that some bonding or insurance situation was needed for this type of situation.
“This is the type of issue that arises from time to time where swift Government action is necessary. Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar must clearly set out what exactly the Government is prepared to do to ensure the welfare of the students in Florida is taken care of and, if necessary, the Government should be prepared to put in place the funds needed to allow the students complete their training and reach their final qualification.”
Mr Dooley said he had raised the issue in the Dáil last Thursday and had sought clarification from the Government on a number of issues but had yet to receive a response.
Fine Gael TD for Donegal North East, Joe McHugh, said the Pilot Training College in Waterford had accepted “substantial five-figure fees” from a Donegal student pilot studying at its partner college in Florida as recently as June 14th.
“Three weeks from that date the student was informed that training was to be suspended indefinitely,” he said.
“The Pilot Training College must disclose if it was aware on June 14th that the training programme was in jeopardy. Irish student pilots have now been told that they must pay figures averaging €48,000 for four training programmes in order to continue their training with another college, despite having already paid the Pilot Training College for these courses.”
He said the student pilots deserved strong support from the Department of Transport and the Irish Aviation Authority that would take into consideration their ability to pay for fees at alternative colleges, and the costs that had arisen from their stranding in Florida.
It must also be established “very quickly” if the college would be in a position next spring to complete planned training programmes for the students upon their return to Ireland.
Mr Varadkar said it would be “a very big change in policy and a very expensive change in policy” if the Government were to pick up the bill for the trainees.
Speaking on RTÉ radio, he said the Government was doing what it could for them “within our obligations and within what we can afford”.