Northeast gets its first aviation academy; 100 students to avail pilot training every year

In a historic move, the Redbird Flight Training Academy was inaugurated at Lilabari Airport in Assam's North Lakhimpur on Tuesday. Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia inaugurated the academy in the presence of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Union Minister of Law and Social Justice Kiren Rijiju. A first-of-its-kind academy in the Northeast region, the management of the premier institute is hopeful that they will be able to bring more and more pilots from the Northeast in the future.

100 students to get pilot training every year 

Speaking to Republic Media Network, the Founder of the academy, Karan Mann said, "We have eight states in the Northeast, but if we look at the aviation industry, we hardly have eight pilots from the region. We do have a good number of air hostesses from the region, but the number of pilots is almost zero. So with this academy coming up in North Lakhimpur, we hope to see a good number of pilots in the future." 

Karan Mann also added that in every batch, an estimated 100 students will pass out of the academy as pilots. "Given the difficult terrain of the Northeast, the trainees here will get a good exposure in the very beginning," added Major Manjeet Rajain, Chairman of the academy.  Starting with two Cessna 172 aircraft, the academy is planning to introduce two more flights in the academy. 

"These are state of the art planes. All the controls and stimulators are similar to the larger aircraft and students will get a first-hand insight into it," added Karan Mann. Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia hailed the move as a historic initiative. In his speech, he stated that people of the region, from now on, not only get covered by the UDAN scheme to the rest of the world but will also get the opportunity to fly a plane. 

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Union Minister for Law and Social Justice Kiren Rijiju, who were also present at the event thanked the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and stressed the importance the Northeast region is availing.  

Image: Twitter/@JMScindia