15 May 2014, Muharraq,
Kingdom of Bahrain: Bahrain
based AFAQ Institute of Aviation Technology (AFAQ) announced signing a new
agreement with NASTECH/FLY NAS Airline to establish the First European EASA 147
approved Aircraft Engineering Training Academy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The signing ceremony was held at NASTECH’s
headquarter in Riyadh and attended by Mr. Izani Azman Merican, Chief Executive Officer
of NASTECH and Mr. Mahmood AlBalooshi, Managing Director and Chief Executive of
AFAQ Institute of Aviation Technology.
Under
the agreement, AFAQ Institute of Aviation Technology will be managing the Aircraft Engineering Maintenance Program (AEMP) which
will be conducted at NASTECH’s facilities in Riyadh
and is targeted towards Saudi youth with high school certificates.
The
program is scheduled to commence in May 2014 for the duration of five years — 1
year of Aviation English orientation followed by 4 years of studying for the
EASA certificate - and will qualify successful trainees with the EASA 147
certificate and EASA Aircraft Maintenance Engineer License issued by the
European Aviation Safety Agency.
Mahmood
AlBalooshi, Managing Director and Chief Executive of AFAQ commented on the
agreement saying “We are delighted to announce this key partnership with
NASTECH/FLYNAS Airline as the new Academy, will be the first of its kind in the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and by working together with our partners we will offer
Saudi graduates the opportunity to train for their Aerotechnic Engineering degrees
in Saudi rather than training abroad.”
Izani
Merican, Chief Executive Officer of NAS-TECH, commented: “The AEMP is a highly
intensive training program that presents a marvelous opportunity for young
Saudi technicians to gain the internationally recognized EASA Part 66 Aircraft Engineering
License, which qualifies them for a career in aviation industry, one of the
fastest growing sectors of the Kingdom’s economy.”
According to the latest data available from the Saudi
General Authority of Civil Aviation, more than 64 million passengers passed
through Saudi Arabia's 28 airports in 2012, up nearly 19 per cent from 2011, and the Kingdom’s domestic air travel market, currently
25-30m passengers annually, is expected to grow 6 percent per year which
requires training Saudi youth to cope with the high growth in the Saudi aviation
market.
NASTECH, a company specialized in Aircraft Engineering and Maintenance
and approved by the Saudi Authority (GACA) and The Cayman Islands (CAACI), is a
subsidiary of the National Air Services Group (NAS Holding).
NASTECH’s capability is diversified from Cessna Citation 550
Bravo, various Gulfstream, Hawker, A320 family, BBJ, Airbus A340, in addition
to supporting different types of operations such as FAR 91, 125, and 121. This
diversity has created a unique environment for NASTECH organizational system to
be able to adjust and accommodate multiple aircraft types.
Riyadh-based FLY NAS is 37 per cent owned by Saudi
investment firm Kingdom Holding and the rest by National Airline Services
Holding (NAS Holding). FLY NAS currently carries 3m passengers annually and
claims 15-18 per cent of the domestic air travel market; its growth plan
envisages achieving a market share of 30 percent over the next two years and
passenger numbers hitting 20m annually by 2020.
Saudi Arabia's first and only budget airline, Flynas, will expand its current fleet of 18
aircraft to 27 with six Airbus A320 and three A330 planes.