Sabena Boeing 747s with four-engined Airbus A340. After the liberalisation of the airline industry throughout Europe and the economic consequences of the Gulf War, the Belgian government, the main shareholder of the company, realized that Sabena had little chance of surviving on its own in this very competitive market, and began searching for a suitable partner. Sabena remained in a poor financial state, and year after year the Belgian government had to cover losses, however, it was however prevented from providing new funds due to EU State Aid rules. Around 1987, SAS tried to merge with the carrier, but the merger
Sabena Flight Academy operation. In 2004, the school was sold to two former managers of Sabena and became the Sabena Flight Academy. It was finally absorbed in 2008 by the Canadian group CAE. The acquisition of SFA by CAE was conducted as part of a larger program to complete a global training network: the CAE Global Academy. The school has two subsidiaries: To gain a place on the course it's necessary to complete an assessment at Sabena Flight Academy. The assessment is designed to test candidates: If successful in completing the assessment to the necessary standard then applicants are welcomed to join the