United Services Flight Training, a division of United Airlines, has become the first training provider outside of China to receive Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) certification to train the nation's airline pilots.

United has already signed one contract under this certification with a Chinese airline and is finalizing a second to train their pilots on Boeing 757 and Airbus 320 aircraft at the Denver Flight Training Center (Denver TK).

Airline industry estimates indicate a need for up to 10,000 new pilots in China through 2010 — making it one of the fastest-growing markets for the type of flight training United provides.

We are pleased the CAAC recognizes that United provides industry-leading pilot training and has approved United to train China's airline pilots, said Captain Brad Thomann, managing director-Flight Standards and Training. Safety is the top priority for everyone at United, and having the opportunity to share our best practices with pilots from other airlines is very important to us. While training the employees of United remains our primary mission, we are looking forward to having China's pilots join those from the many airlines and governments around the world that we already train in Denver.

The certificates issued grant approval for United to provide type rating training on the B757 and A320 fleet types. United can pursue additional fleet type certificates from the CAAC as training demand warrants. Pilots who undergo this training will hold FAA and CAAC Commercial Pilot's Certificates. After United trains the Chinese pilots on aircraft type, the CAAC will award the pilots' type certification — similar to the process followed by the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).

This is an important first step into what we believe will become one of the world's largest contract training markets, and enables us to continue to promote United's existing training assets to generate revenue for the company, said Patrick Heck, general manager-United Services Flight Training. We are proud to continue to play a positive role in Denver's economy by bringing this business across the globe and into the city, giving Denver international exposure to some of the world's fastest-growing economies.