Charles Alcock is managing editor of the AIN Media Group, having rejoined the company in 2019. He has been an aviation journalist since 1986, and previously worked for AIN from 1990 to 2017, most recently as editor-in-chief. His main focus is on covering new aviation technology and business models, as well as international news.
Having been raised in the London area, Alcock studied at the University of Manchester in the UK and earned an honors degree in Politics and Modern History. He speaks English and French, and some German.

Managing Editor

Bombardier manufactures a variety of business aircraft models, provides engineering, and aircraft maintenance services.

Bombardier Challenger 600, 601, 604, 605, and 650

Charles Alcock

AeronautX is preparing to open a new business aviation pilot academy in the first quarter of 2027, the Wels, Austria-based flight-training provider announced on Tuesday. The facility, near Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (EHAM) in the Netherlands, will start by providing training for Bombardier’s Challenger 300 and 600 series jets, with the first pilots expected to come from launch customer VistaJet.
Part of the AX Aero group, AeronautX has promised a more personalized approach to training than established providers. The purpose-built Amsterdam center will provide training for initial type ratings, recurrent training, and instructor qualification for type ratings.
Describing CAE and FlightSafety International as “a complacent duopoly,” AX Aero Group v-p for North America Brad Nolen said these rival training providers do not employ instructors with relevant current operational experience. AeronautX intends to give its instructors leave to maintain operational experience, in some cases flying with customers to learn their standard operating procedures.
Nolen said in a media briefing that there is room in the market for a new entrant, given that around 700 business aircraft join the global fleet each year. He said the training capacity shortfall is worsening as pilots are retiring at a rapid rate, and the wider air transport sector faces a future need for 30,000 more flight crew.
“Our goal at AeronautX is to deliver training within a trusted, relationship-driven environment,” AX Aero Group chairman Niall Olver commented. “We believe exceptional training comes from combining our advanced technology with a frictionless and exceptional learning experience.”
According to Olver, the center will offer a fresh approach to training that will challenge the sector’s dominant providers. “The big players formulate their programs on historical data, but things have changed, and the industry is moving toward evidence-based and competence-based training,” he told AIN. “We are using real-world data as well as artificial intelligence in ways that reduce the time pilots are out of the cockpit and away from home.”
<h2>Flexible Booking</h2>
Challenger 300 series training will begin in March 2027, with Challenger 600 series to follow in July. AeronautX will also train operators’ instructors and allow them to use its simulators on dry-lease terms. Customers can book training without long-term agreements and can cancel sessions at short notice.
AeronautX says it will work with operators to tailor training programs to their priorities and circumstances, such as fleet breakdowns and crew experience levels. The company will also offer ground-based training and special courses covering topics such as fire safety.

Fractional ownership group VistaJet has committed to training its Challenger pilots at the new Amsterdam facility. AeronautX said it has also been in discussions with other operators about similar partnerships, and Olver said the response to the new market entrant has been encouraging.
“High quality and consistent pilot training is fundamental to our operation,” Vista chief operating office Nick van der Meer said. “Our partnership with AeronautX gives us access to the latest simulation technology and a modern, purpose-built training environment in Amsterdan, supporting the continued development of our own Challenger pilot training program.”
With space for an initial eight simulators, the new training center is in a converted warehouse building located between Schiphol Airport and the center of Amsterdam. It will open as an EASA and UK approved training organization and is expected to complete FAA requirements by the middle of next year.
The Challenger simulators are being produced by AeronautX’s sister company Axis Flight Simulation in an arrangement Olver said is “at arms’ length and market prices.” More aircraft types will be added to the training portfolio in future, with the company indicating it will have an ongoing focus on Bombardier models. The company will also use an AI-driven debriefing session to help pilots review sessions with instructors.
AeronautX is now recruiting instructors with current operational experience on the Challengers with a view to providing clients with mentoring support it says goes beyond standard training provision. “By combining innovation with real-world experience and a highly personalized approach, AeronautX is redefining what operators and pilots should expect from a training provider,” AeronautX founder and CEO Jörg Oberhofer said.
Oberhofer holds EASA and FAA air transport pilot licenses and has more than 17,000 flight hours over a 40 year career with airlines and business aircraft operators. AeronautX’s head of training is Robert Lascelles who is type rating instructor and examiner for Bombardier Global jets, with past instructor experience on Gulfstream GV and Dassault Falcon 7X aircraft. He was formerly global head of training and Bombardier fleet manager with CAE UK.

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In this article

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