U.S. aerospace and defense giant Lockheed Martin Corp. will build a flight training center in western South Korea for pilots working for local low-cost carriers, the land ministry said Sunday.

Under an agreement signed Friday with Incheon International Airport Corp., Lockheed Martin will invest $15 million in the envisioned training center, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.

The training center will be located near Incheon International Airport, about 40 kilometers west of Seoul and the main gateway to South Korea, and be completed at the end of this year, the ministry said.

Local low-fare airlines had been pushing to strike a deal with Lockheed Martin since 2010 as they were forced to resort to overseas facilities to train their pilots due to tight budgets.

Starting next year, about 360 pilots of local budget airlines will undergo training at the center, resulting in a cost saving of 3 billion won ($2.65 million) a year, the ministry said.

The ministry said it aims to develop the facility into a global flight training center by luring pilots from Southeast Asian low-cost carriers. 

(Yonhap News)