Sri Lanka emerging as a regional aviation trainer
Sri Lanka is steadily emerging as a trainer in the aviation industry
for the region.
The latest indicator of this favourable trend is the successful
conclusion of a basic aerodrome fire fighting course by a group of fire
fighters from the Maldives Airports Company at the Civil Aviation
Training Centre, Sri Lanka.
At a training session |
These fire fighters underwent the regular basic fire fighting course
that is followed by recruits to the airport fire service of the
Bandaranaike International Airport with minor adaptations to suit the
specific operational requirements of Male International Airport.
The course was of three months duration and included theoretical
subjects such as Firemanship, Fire Ground Skills, Aircraft Fire
Fighting, Fire Vehicles, Radio Communication, Fire fighting equipment
and hydrants.
The trainees also underwent practical training and were also exposed
to live fire exercises conducted under the supervision of experienced
instructors. The course also included training on first aid delivered by
the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society and an outward bound training stint.
The Civil Aviation Training Centre (CATC), situated at Ratmalana, is
the training division of Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd.,
the fully state owned company vested with the responsibility of
providing airport services within the geographical extent of Sri Lanka
and aviation services within the Colombo Flight Information Region.
It provides training to officers deployed in specialized services
such as Air Traffic Control, Avionics Engineering, Aeronautical
Communication Services, Airport Fire and Rescue Services and Airport
Security Services.
Its faculty comprises qualified, trained and experienced personnel
drawn from operations. The CATC is presently the only aviation training
institution in Sri Lanka enjoying full membership in the TRAINAIR
program of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Up to now this institution has been primarily training only those who
are employed by them. Recently, the management of Airport and Aviation
Services has made a decision to open its training programs for
commercial participation. |