Sabena Flight Academy to the Saab Safir 91B, replaced in 1958 by the Cessna 310B and in 1981 by the Embraer Xingu. In 1991, the government gifted the "École d’aviation civile" to Sabena. It was first renamed Belgian Aviation School and then Sabena Air Training Center, and the school moved into a new building at Brussels National Airport. It was decided to carry out practical flight training in Phoenix in the USA because the weather in Arizona allows flights 365 days per year in a high and complex air traffic environment. Despite the bankruptcy of Sabena in 2001, the flying school continued in
Nordic European Airlines Nordic European Airlines Nordic European Airlines was a charter airline based Stockholm, Sweden. Nordic European Airlines began its life in 1991 as Nordic East Airways operating one Douglas DC-9-21 aircraft on charters to the Mediterranean region. In 1992 the airline received two MD-80s. Because they needed an aircraft with a longer range than the MD-80s, the airline acquired Boeing 737-300 aircraft and the DC-9s and MD-80s were returned to the leasing companies while additionally a 737-400 was acquired. In 1995 Nordic East acquired two Lockheed L-1011s from Cathay Pacific and with those, and a third aircraft added later, the charter