Virgin 'takes off' from Silverwater

Virgin Blue’s international airline, V Australia, has set up an operational base in Sydney and commissioned its new $14 million Boeing 777 aircraft simulator, at CAE’s Silverwater facility. The simulator is a replica of the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft allowing pilot recruits to “take off” prior to the commencement of long haul flights to the USA, from December. V Australia will be the only Australian-based airline to operate the globally popular 777 airliner. The Canadian-based CAE is a world leader in providing simulation and modelling technologies and integrated training solutions for the civil aviation industry and defence forces around the globe. It has a facility at the Richmond RAAF base.