Construction begins on 12M aviation academy at Norwich Airport

Construction on a world-first £12M aviation academy in Norwich has begun at Norwich Airport.

As part of a growth deal, construction has now begun at Norwich International Airport, on a £12M aviation academy aimed to train the next generation of pilots, engineers and aircraft crew.

The project, which is the first of its kind in the UK, will support 80 engineering apprentices a year, as well as degree-level and further and higher education courses in engineering, airport operations and cabin-crew training for hundreds of students.

The first panels of cladding are being stripped away from a Second World War hangar at Norwich Airport, with diggers now on site. After three years, Aviation Skills Partnership Chief Executive Simon Witts can step into the hangar, soon to be occupied by the state-of-the-art academy.

Simon Witts said: “I could visualise it because we have spent so much time on the design, but it’s only when you come on site it comes alive and you can really see it.”

The academy will consist of 20 classrooms, five engineering workshops and a complete live Airbus 320 aircraft, which Mr Witts said will bring aviation training back to Norwich.

Under the watch of RG Carter Construction, who have been tasked with driving the development, the Type C hanger needs to be stripped down to its metal frame.

Around 1,500 cubic metres of concrete will fill the floor space – the size of a football pitch. At its peak, a total of 120 workers will be on site from 16 different trades. Mr Witts believes that on its completion next year, it is likely to draw further aviation firms into Norwich.

He said: “Where academies start to appear you start to get organisations want to be around and part of the supply chain. It sometimes has a catalytic effect.”

The project is being funded by Anglia LEP and Norfolk County Council-owned NPS Group, which will become equity partners, after the funding was secured in 2013 when the vision for the academy was announced.

In September, the first class of 20-40 students will be enrolled, and will be taught elsewhere before moving to the airport when construction is complete. At its peak, 500 16-21 year olds will study at the site.

The next stage is to build accommodation nearby, to house students enrolled in the degree course, in partnership with the University of East Anglia.

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