The MPL training program offers an excellent foundation for a career as an airline pilot. Students are trained directly to fly the A320 aircraft family and are given priority (for five years) for employment at Finnair when the airline recruits pilots for this aircraft type. The training program is specifically designed to meet airline needs and includes a substantial amount of type‑specific training in the A320 simulator.

Students must meet Finnair’s selection criteria, which can be found from our career site. The selection process consists of an application stage, aptitude testing, and interviews. Selex Oy’s personnel selection service is used for student selection for both the MPL training and the Finnish Aviation Academy.

The duration of the MPL training program is approximately 22 months, including type rating training on an Airbus aircraft. After completing the program, the student qualifies to work as an A320 airline pilot for Finnair. The timing of employment depends on Finnair’s operational needs, but graduates of the program are given priority for five years whenever Finnair recruits co-pilots to the A320 family, which is typically a pilot’s first airline position.

Finnair organizes the training in cooperation with a partner that provides basic flight training. The partner for the first training program is Center Air Pilot Academy in Denmark. 

The first 18-20 months are carried out at Center Air’s training center in Roskilde, Denmark. The remainder of the training takes place on an A320 flight simulator at Finnair Flight Academy in Vantaa, Finland.

Finnair will arrange flights for the students to Denmark at the start of the training and their return to Finland at the conclusion of the abroad portion of the program. Any other travel between Finland and Denmark during the foreign training period will be the responsibility of the student.

The student is responsible for accommodation costs during the period of study, regardless of the study location. Finnair’s partner organizations offer affordable accommodation in a student dormitory for the duration of the study period abroad.

The cost for the student is 60,000 euros. The payment is divided so that during the training the student pays a total of 37,500 euros in three installments. The student pays the remaining 22,500 euros once they have been employed by Finnair. Students are responsible for their own accommodation costs during the training period, both in Finland and in Denmark.

The MPL program is a training path specifically designed for airline use. It differs from traditional professional pilot licence (ATPL) training in that the student already knows at the start of the training which airline they will work for and which aircraft type they will be flying. Students who are accepted into MPL training have a training agreement with the airline. The airline’s flight procedures and operating models are integrated into the training from the very beginning, and all elements included in the new pilot’s induction are built into the various stages of the program. Therefore, no separate co‑pilot training or type rating is required.

The goal is to train approximately 40–60 pilots per year through the MPL program.

Due to growth and upcoming retirements, Finnair’s pilot demand is estimated to be 80–100 pilots per year over the coming years.

The goal is for the first graduates of the program to begin flying duties at Finnair around the summer of 2028. The timing depends on Finnair’s operational needs.