Whanganui District Council holding company supports flight school downsizing

Whanganui District Council Holdings chairwoman Annette Main is optimistic about the future of the flight school. Photo / Bevan Conley

Whanganui District Council holding company chairwoman Annette Main supports recent flight school redundancies and says more may be needed in future.

Two flight instructors and one administrator at the New Zealand International Commercial Pilot Academy (NZICPA) have been made redundant. Student numbers at the school have fallen because international students cannot come into the country.

But Main, who chairs Whanganui District Council Holdings, is still optimistic about the future of the flight school, one of the council's commercial assets.

"Obviously we are really supportive of everything we are doing to get the school back on the road for the new year," she said.

Holdings is "sitting out" the Covid-19 disruption and working with the Government to achieve the earliest places possible for the re-entry of international students.

The school has 20 New Zealand students but relies on international students who make up 80 per cent of its roll.

"[The school] is still operating well," Main said.

"It's still got a large number of students. What will happen is that gradually they will start to drop off and there will come a crunch point when there aren't enough students to sustain the operation."

Even if international travel stays at a low level there will still be a demand for pilot training, she believes.

"There are age limits for pilots, and they have to keep themselves up to date, and also there's lots of domestic flying."

Flight simulators are used in training and where they are still operating throughout the world they are busy and at capacity, she said.

"We are keeping in touch with all of that intelligence from across the world, and the demand is there."

Holdings, which has bought several properties around Whanganui for student accommodation, is currently doing some earthquake strengthening on one of the buildings at the former Collegiate Motor Inn where students are housed.