Market Intelligence: North and Central Asia

Acron Aviation to Provide A320 Type Rating Training for Air Astana at its London Training Center

United Kingdom & Kazakhstan – Acron Aviation today announced that it has been selected by Air Astana, the leading carrier of Kazakhstan, to deliver Airbus A320 Type Rating training from its London Training Center (LTC).

Under the new agreement, Air Astana will utilize the state-of-the-art facilities offered at Acron Aviation’s LTC, including dedicated briefing rooms and high fidelity, Level D Full Flight Simulators (FFS), and benefit from consistent, high-quality training outcomes that support its continued expansion and crew development objectives.

Acron Aviation’s proven track record for delivering world-class pilot training, the quality of its training center, and the digital support available to trainees were key factors in Air Astana’s selection.

Patrick Davis, VP & GM London Training Center, Acron Aviation, said: “We’re proud to support Air Astana’s A320 Type Rating requirements from our London Training Center, drawing on our expertise as an established training provider.” Davis continued, “adding such a respected international flag carrier to our customer base reinforces Acron Aviation’s position as a trusted provider of advanced flight training solutions.”

The training agreement deepens the partnership between the two companies, first established in 2020 when Air Astana purchased its first A320neo FFS from Acron Aviation – which was also the first of its type in Kazakhstan. This will be followed by a second A320neo, which is scheduled to enter service early next year at the airline’s training center in Astana.

Filippos Siakkas, COO, Air Astana added: “Partnering with Acron Aviation ensures access to dependable A320 Type Rating capacity for our pilots. Their experience and infrastructure provide the assurance of quality and throughput we value.”

The agreement represents another step in Acron Aviation’s mission to export UK-built training systems and curricula to a growing global customer base.

Source: Acron Aviation

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Airbus Delivers 507 Aircraft in First 9 Months of 2025, Reaffirms Full-Year Guidance

Global – Airbus has reported its commercial aircraft performance for the first nine months of 2025, with 507 aircraft delivered and consolidated revenues of Euro 47.4 billion. Despite ongoing supply chain challenges, the company has reaffirmed its full-year guidance and outlined future ramp-up trajectories for its A220, A320, A330, and A350 programs.

  • A total of 507 commercial aircraft were delivered in 9m 2025, up from 497 in the same period of 2024. Deliveries included:

    • 62 A220s

    • 392 A320 Family

    • 20 A330s

    • 33 A350s

  • Gross commercial aircraft orders reached 610 units, with 514 net orders after cancellations.

  • Airbus’ commercial aircraft revenues rose 3% year-on-year to Euro 33.9 billion.

  • EBIT Adjusted from commercial aircraft activities increased to Euro 3.27 billion, supported by a favourable hedge rate and reduced R&D expenses, though partially offset by a less favourable delivery mix.

  • Airbus maintains its 2025 guidance:

    • ~820 commercial aircraft deliveries

    • EBIT Adjusted ~Euro 7.0 billion

    • Free cash flow before customer financing ~ Euro 4.5 billion

  • Production targets and ramp-up outlook:

    • A220: Rate 12 now expected in 2026, reflecting current market balance.

    • A320 Family: Ramp-up to rate 75 per month targeted for 2027.

    • A330: Stabilized at rate 4; rate 5 expected by 2029.

    • A350: Targeting rate 12 by 2028.

  • The order backlog for commercial aircraft stood at 8,665 units at the end of September 2025.

Statements

  • “Our nine-month results reflect the level of commercial aircraft deliveries and a solid performance in the Defence and Space and Helicopters businesses,” said Guillaume Faury, Airbus CEO.

  • “Deliveries remain backloaded amid a complex and dynamic operating environment. Meanwhile, we continue to expand our industrial capacity to support the commercial aircraft ramp-up,” he added.

Source: Airbus
Photo Credit: Airbus (shown as meta image)

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Pilot Training Industry Supplier Feature – Symbiotics – Leading Aspiring Pilot and Pilot Assessment Solutions

In this week’s AFM Pilot Training Leadership Interview Series we speak with Hannah Davies, Director of Strategy and Growth at Symbiotics – a leading assessment solution provider for the pilot training ecosystem and airlines.

The conversation covers:

  • Company Overview: Symbiotics are global leaders with over 30 years’ experience specialising in psychometric assessments for aviation professionals through their ADAPT online platform, delivering over 150,000 tests annually across 80 countries. Their solutions support airlines, training schools, militaries, and other aviation operators worldwide, to support the recruitment, selection and development of aviation professionals aligned with ICAO competencies and regulatory requirements.
  • Expansion into Cabin Crew Assessments: Symbiotics recently expanded its expertise to include cabin crew assessments. Developed with industry input and aligned with ICAO competencies and CBTA principles, the new suite evaluates personality, cognitive reasoning, and crew resource management skills. The company also partnered with Sky People Training to add a foundation knowledge test, ensuring a comprehensive evaluation for both new and experienced crew.
  • Global Presence and Innovation: Active at key training and aviation events worldwide, Symbiotics values direct engagement with clients to gather feedback and share insights. The company continues to innovate, with the upcoming launch of a mobile-optimised testing interface aimed at enhancing accessibility and user experience during global recruitment campaigns.
  • Industry Trends and Challenges: Hannah highlighted that while pilot recruitment has slowed due to supply chain issues, demand is expected to rise again soon. She noted a stronger focus on selecting the right candidates early to reduce training costs and improve success rates. A key challenge remains aligning and analysing large datasets to link psychometric outcomes with training performance under CBTA and EBT frameworks.
  • The Future of Pilot Training and Symbiotics’ Role: Looking ahead, Hannah envisions a more data-driven and inclusive pilot training industry, with competency-based and personalised learning paths. She also sees growing use of AI and technology – where proven effective – to enhance training quality and safety. Symbiotics aims to stay at the forefront by combining innovation, data analysis, and close collaboration with clients.

For more information:

You can find all of the AFM.aero Pilot Training Industry Interview Episodes here.

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Airbus Announces Commercial Aircraft Orders and Deliveries for the Month of September 2025

Global – In September 2025, aircraft manufacturer Airbus:

  • Delivered 73 aircraft to 41 customers
    • 1 A220-100
    • 8 A220-300
    • 1 A319neo
    • 18 A320neo
    • 40 A321neo
    • 4 A330-900
    • 1 A350-900
  • Secured 10 gross orders
  • Year to date Airbus has delivered 507 aircraft to 79 customers.

See last year’s stats here.

AFM Team Note – kindly contact us for a detailed Excel breakdown of orders and deliveries by airline.

Source: Airbus

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