Discount airline Wizz Air’s new training centre, where three hundred pilots and flight attendants will be able to receive training every day, was officially opened in Budapest.

The new training centre, which is close to the airport and was established with an investment of 30 million euros, will train pilots using two full flight simulators, while flight attendants will be able to practice their duties, from the daily routine to emergency procedures, in several fully fitted cabins.

In his speech, CEO of Wizz Air József Váradi stressed that it has been an active year, with the launch of 130 new air passenger routes, the employment of over a thousand people, and 2.6 billion dollars in investment. Turnover increased by 20 percent compared to last year, he added.

The new centre was necessary in view of the fact that a similar increase in traffic and the number of staff is expected next year, he said. The new centre means all of the airline’s training centres are now situated in Budapest. The company is employing 350-3000 pilots and 500 flight attendants each year.

Minister of State for Communication Tamás Menczer from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was the Government’s goal to help as many Hungarian enterprises as possible enter export markets, and for as many job-creating and high-added value investments as possible to arrive in the country. “None of these are possible without suitable transport infrastructure, and accordingly Wizz Air plays a very important role, because thanks to the airline Hungary is accessible from 67 destinations in 31 countries”, the Minister of State said.

“Hungarian exports exceeded 100 billion euros last year, and 96 new major foreign investments were made in Hungary, both record figures, and the data for the first half of this year is also very favourable. This means that we have succeeded in also reinforcing the growth of the Hungarian economy from the foreign trade side, and investments and export successes are providing more and more families with a dependable income and a calculable future”, he added.

(MTI)