Central Asian State Delegation Visits French FTO to Discuss New Training Center Partnership

Kazakhstan – Kazakhstan and France have agreed to expand cooperation in civil aviation training as the country seeks to address a growing annual demand for 500–600 new aviation specialists, including pilots, engineers, air traffic controllers, and ground service personnel. The agreement was confirmed by the Kazakh Ministry of Transport following a working meeting between Deputy Transport Minister Talgat Lastayev and senior leadership of France’s École Nationale de l’Aviation Civile (ENAC) including Olivier Chansou, Director General of the École Nationale de l’Aviation Civile (ENAC), France’s National School of Civil Aviation, and Nicolas Cazalis, Deputy Director General.

• The initiative aligns with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s directive to modernise national talent-development systems and strengthen ties with global academic institutions.
• Discussions centred on establishing a regional aviation training centre in Astana, intended to become a Central Asian hub for civil aviation education aligned with international standards.
• A domestic centre of this scale would reduce Kazakhstan’s reliance on overseas training institutions and support sustainable workforce development across the sector.
• ENAC, recognised as one of France's leading aviation school fully compliant with ICAO, EASA, IATA, and ACI standards, is positioned to support Kazakhstan in elevating flight safety, enhancing regulatory oversight capabilities, and strengthening the national aviation training framework.
• ENAC representatives provided the Kazakh delegation with a tour of key facilities, with both sides agreeing to continue technical and academic cooperation.

Source: Kazakh Ministry of Transport