As long-haul start-up Norse Atlantic Airways gears up for launch in the second quarter of this year it has “agreed to work together” with flight training provider, OSM Aviation Academy, to establish a cadet pilot programme.

The Arendal, Norway-headquarted airline states that once it’s fully operational, development of the programme will begin in close collaboration with OSM Aviation Academy. At present, Norse plans to use 15 Boeing 787s – of these, six -9s are sourced from BOC Aviation Limited, while the remaining nine examples, consisting of six -9s along with a trio of smaller -8s would come from AerCap – on transatlantic sorties between Europe and North America.

Kristin Berthelsen, chief culture officer at Norse, said: “Initiating a career path and mentorship programme for our pilots as early as their initial stages of education and training aligns with our values of inclusive, ownership and kindness. We believe that taking ownership and including our future colleagues at an early stage will be a key effort in securing the talent of tomorrow.”

Hans Kyrre Hultgren, managing director at OSM Aviation Academy, added: “We are thrilled to launch this collaboration with Norse Atlantic Airways, a company that represents innovation and will create many new jobs in the aviation industry. We see our students as future colleagues, ensuring that they have the best career options after graduation. This partnership will motivate them even further to study diligently and work hard to pursue these opportunities and make a future for themselves.”

OSM Aviation Academy – in which Norse’s CEO, Bjørn Tore Larsen, owns 73.5% through his firm BTLCO – has trained pilots since 1963 and today fields training locations in Norway, Sweden and the USA.