Flight International – 6 August 2019

WORKING WEEK

ightglobal.com 6-12 August 2019 | Flight International | 43

Accessing funding is still a recruitment problem, says Woodward

Skyborne helps pilots get airborne

Former commercial pilot Lee Woodward saw an opening for high-quality, bespoke airline training.

Now, with an established brand, the academy is preparing to begin courses at Spanish and UK sites

WORK EXPERIENCE LEE WOODWARD

will soon be opening our Span-

ish training base at Castellon

airport, in eastern Spain,

enabling our cadets to train in

year-round perfect weather and

flying conditions. Here in the

UK, our next major milestones

will be the completion of our

brand-new 80-bedroom campus

accommodation centre at

Gloucestershire airport and em-

barking on formalising our air-

line partnerships. Our goal is to

deliver 120 European Union Avi-

ation Safety Agency-integrated/

multi-crew pilot’s licence cadets

and 60 modular pilots per year

with Skyborne, and we are well

on our way to laying the founda-

tions to achieve these figures.

We are also launching a Bachelor

of Science degree programme and

will commence attestation train-

ing for up to 300 new cabin crew.

What do you enjoy the most?

I love this industry and truly enjoy

engaging with fresh, new and tal-

ented cadet pilots embarking on

their career pathways. I like

solving problems and innovating.

I enjoy working with like-minded

professionals in the airlines and

take great satisfaction in seeing the

embryonic plans for a new cadet

programme come to life. n

How did you get into aviation?

From a very young age I dreamed

of being an airline pilot. I success-

fully completed the selection pro-

cess for the British Airways cadet

sponsored pilot programme in the

late 1980s. There were only 500

places and, allegedly, more than

60,000 people applied. I was one

of the fortunate few.

How has your career progressed?

Having graduated from BA’s pilot

training programme in November

1990, I immediately embarked on

a Boeing 757/767 type rating and

seven years later, progressed to

the 747-400. For medical reasons,

I left BA and joined what was

then CTC Aviation as a type rating

instructor and examiner. I have

continuously held instructor and

examiner qualifications on the

757/767 and I am also qualified

on the Dassault Falcon 2000LX.

I left CTC in 2017 to co-found

Skyborne. The aim is to fill the

gap in the market with a high-

quality and bespoke airline train-

ing academy.

What have been the best parts?

Some of the highlights have been

my first base training experience

and my first flight with passen-

gers on the 757. Aside from that,

flying the 747-400 into the old

Hong Kong airport, Kai Tak, and

flying the then UK prime minister

and his government to Jamaica.

I’ve also been fortunate enough to

have flown on Concorde, which

was a truly amazing experience.

Why did you launch Skyborne?

I am very passionate about the air-

line piloting career and proud to

have facilitated the career

advancement of several thousand

cadet pilots over the years. At Sky-

borne, we are taking the training

delivery and user experience to

another level. We have established

a forward-thinking, capable and

dynamic team so we can innovate

and improve all aspects of pilot

training. I see a gap in the market

for a high-quality, almost bou-

tique, approved training organisa-

tion and we plan to fill that niche.

What are the problems facing

the airline training industry?

One of the biggest challenges is

removing barriers to entry, such

as implementing inclusive fund-

ing solutions. Various factors

such as the impending global

pilot shortage mean it is vitally

important that the talent pool

widens so Skyborne can source

the very best cadets for its airline

customers. It makes sense to

provide easier and more afforda-

ble access to funds. At Skyborne,

we see this as a high priority and

something we are working very

hard on delivering, through

conversations with various

financial institutions and bodies.

Another challenge is the contin-

ued pressure to develop more

sustainable and environmentally

friendly technologies. Finally,

greater harmonisation and mutu-

al recognition for pilot licensing

qualifications across the board

could improve labour markets.

What are your plans?

We have completed the first stage

of our development by introduc-

ing a strong brand that truly rep-

resents what Skyborne is about –

quality. Having signed the

agreement earlier this year, we

Skyborne

If you would like to feature in

Working Week, or you know

someone who would, email

your pitch to kate.sarsfield@

flightglobal.com

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