Airservices Australia bolsters air traffic controller training with new Airways International deal

Airservices Australia and Airways International have signed a training agreement to accelerate Australian air traffic controller (ATC) onboarding efforts, reinforcing an enduring partnership between the two organisations.

Airways International, the commercial arm of Airways New Zealand, will now welcome several cohorts of Airservices ATC trainees over the next 12 months to commence training for aerodrome and surveillance roles.

The first two group of students under this new contract will arrive at the Airways Training academy in Christchurch in April 2026, joining an existing Airservices cohort who began training there in October 2025. This follows the successful graduation of two previous Airservices cohorts, with the most recent completing their studies December 2025 and the first graduating in August 2024.

Airservices Australia Chief Executive Officer Rob Sharp said the new training agreement reflected the organisation's commitment to delivering the best-possible air traffic management services in Australian-controlled airspace.

"Airservices is exploring all opportunities to safely and efficiently fast-track controller training and recruitment, as part of a collaborative aviation industry approach to improving outcomes for the travelling public," Mr Sharp said.

Airservices is recruiting and training additional ATCs to strengthen resilience across the Australian aviation network, with a strong pipeline of newly endorsed controllers coming on board. Airservices endorsed 91 controllers in 2025 and is aiming to endorse another 95 in 2026.

James Evans, Airways International's General Manager Commercial, said the contract highlights the trust Airservices places in Airways' training expertise.

"We're proud to continue supporting Airservices Australia in developing highly skilled air traffic controllers. This agreement reflects the confidence in our training programs and our ability to deliver world-class outcomes, and also demonstrates the value of collaboration between our organisations."

This latest agreement builds on the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Airservices Australia and Airways New Zealand at Airspace Asia Pacific in Hong Kong in December 2025, outlining a framework for collaboration across a range of strategic initiatives including air traffic services training.

It follows an initial ATC training contract signed in November 2023, which marked the beginning of a successful training relationship. Airservices has also recently adopted Airways International's full SureSelect ATC selection suite for the robust and validated selection of candidates for ATC training.

About Airservices
Airservices Australia is a government-owned organisation responsible for safely and efficiently managing air traffic in 11 per cent of the world's airspace, as well as the provision of aviation rescue fire fighting services at Australia's busiest airports. We are regulated by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and work closely with our customers and industry to support the long-term growth of the aviation industry.

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