Lack of aircrafts in local flying schools compels students to go abroad for training
While training pilots in almost all aviation schools in Sri Lanka takes at least two years or more it is less than a year in the US. Lack of aircrafts is the reason that training takes longer here and students prefer foreign flying schools (mostly the US) for their training.
Considering these issues,, Fairway Holdings (Pvt) Ltd stepped into fill this gap and on Monday launched its aviation arm Fairway Aviation Academy near the Ratmalana Airport.
Chief Flight Instructor of the academy Kosala Fernando told the Business Times on the sidelines of the launch, that in the US most flying schools have many aircrafts just like cars on roads. “But here in Sri Lanka we have limited number of aircrafts. Flying schools in Sri Lanka did not get massive investments thinking the future was uncertain. If there is a required amount of aircraft students from Sri Lanka will not go abroad to train to become a pilot.”
He said that at the Fairway Aviation Academy there are three Cessna 152 and Cessna 172 aircrafts with three more to arrive from US. There will also be a floatplane to be put up in Koggala which will be a separate operation.
“We do have training starting from Private Pilot License (PPL), Commercial Private License (CPL) and Air Transport Pilot License (ATPL) in the Cessna 152, Cessna 172 and the floatplane. Also we are planning to launch helicopter training for the first time in Sri Lanka in the future. Within six months a student can obtain the PPL and in one year the CPL and ATPL. Quality training is very important for students,” he noted.
Minimum qualifications required for training to become an airline pilot is three credits at the GCE O/L (Maths, English and Science) in one sitting. The total cost for the pilot training is US$45,000, he said.
Civil Aviation Authority Senior Director Parakrama Dissanayake, speaking at the event said, “Aviation is the fastest and safest mode of transport and air transportation has become inseparable. This is very true for Sri Lanka as an island nation and the country is much dependent on air travel for global connectivity.”
Quoting the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), he said that there will be an anticipated shortage of skilled aviation professionals in the near future. According to ICAO figures in the next 20 years airlines will have to add 25,000 new aircrafts to the current 17,000 commercial fleet across the globe. By 2026, 480,000 new technicians will be needed to maintain these aircrafts and over 350,000 pilots to fly them.
The reason for the shortage is that the demand for aviation professionals will exceed the supply in future. Of the many underlining factors for the shortage two important issues are insufficient training capacity to meet the demand and accessible to affordable training, he added.