Asiana Airlines will finally flew airplane without passengers to make its supersize A380 pilots maintain their qualifications. A380 pilots have to take off and land three times within 90 days in order to maintain their qualifications. The new coronavirus crisis had stopped Asiana Airlines’ operation of A380 airplanes.
Eight Asiana Airlines pilots will fly A380 airplanes in the West Sea Training Area near Incheon International Airport for three days from May 6, said sources in the aviation industry on May 7. No passengers or cargoes will be loaded on this airplane. On May 6, three instructor-level pilots conducted a total of nine training flights. From this day to May 8, a total of 17 training flights will be conducted.
The A380 airplane costs tens of millions of won for a takeoff and a landing. Asiana Airlines, whose business performance is sluggish, is forced to enforce the training.
Currently, Asiana and Korean Air are the only two airlines operating the A380 model. There are a total of six A380 airplanes and 143 pilots at in Asiana. In order to maintain their qualifications as pilots, they must actually fly or train through a simulator.
Korean Air has one A380 simulator, but cannot let Asiana Airline pilots use the simulator due to its busy training schedule. Asiana Airlines negotiated with Thailand which has a simulator in Asia. But the spread of the pandemic did not allow Asiana Airline pilots to enter Thailand, so Asiana Airlines decided to execute training flights. "We will continue to consult with Thailand for smooth training in the future," Asiana said.