It costs €110,000 to become an airline pilot: A new report says the ISIF should be used to offer low-cost loans to candidates

Cork's Atlantic Flight Training would commit to expanding operations at airports including Waterford if such a fund was in place

A Boeing 737 simulator used by AFTA to train pilots. The company said it has over 100 applications on file from individuals who cannot access the more than €100,000 required for a full commercial pilot’s license. 

A €40m pilot training loan fund should be created from the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) to provide low-cost and fully repayable debt finance to train commercial pilots at Irish flight schools.

That is one of the five recommendations from a new study, commissioned by former Ryanair CEO Declan Ryan, who heads aviation investment group Irelandia.