Ambassador Visits JAT Airways

REPORT ON A ONE DAY FAMILIARISATION VISIT TO THE JAT AIRWAYS FLIGHT ACADEMY IN VRSAC, BELGRADE, BY HIS EXCELLENCY DR. NYAHO NYAHO-TAMAKLOE, THURSDAY, 10TH AUGUST, 2006

As part of efforts to promote bilateral relations between Ghana and Serbia in the field of technology and aviation, His Excellency Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe paid a day’s working visit to the Flight Academy of the Serbian (former Yugoslav) National Airline, JAT Airways, which is located in Vrsac, 82km from the capital, Belgrade. The purpose of the visit was to familiarize himself with the various training programmes of the Academy as well as seek the possibility of Ghanaian students being admitted into the piloting school in the near future.

2. In welcoming His Excellency to the office of Flight Academy, Mr. Gradimir Duncic, Deputy Director and Marketing Director of the Academy noted that the Academy which became a part of JAT Airways in 1972, has been training commercial pilots from over thirty airline companies around the world, including those from JAT Airways. Indeed some of these trainees had come from African countries like Egypt, Nigeria, Libya, Angola Guinea and Mali.

3. Continuing, the Deputy Director who disclosed that the Academy trained its first pilots in the year 1954, also mentioned the presence of ten (10) Indian students at the Academy, presently; a few more of them were being expected, shortly.

4. He asserted that the Academy was an open institution which welcomed students from all over the world, and therefore looked forward to receiving students from Ghana in the near future.

5. Expousing on the activities of the Academy, the Deputy Director mentioned that the premises of the Academy which occupies a total area of three hundred and sixty (360) acres was the starting place of gliding in the country, and in 1972 it hosted the World Gliding Championship. Besides, he noted, the Academy’s programmes were cost-effective compared to those of other pilot training academies in Europe and the Americas. The Academy also owned a farm from which cattle, sheep, chicken, cheese and milk are produced to feed the students.

6. In his remarks, His Excellency Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe mentioned Captains Agyare, Dorkenoo and Sam, respectively who were trained in England and flew for the then West African Airways, as being among the earliest pilots that Ghana produced. His Excellency noted further that during the early 1960s under President Nkrumah, the national airline, Ghana Airways expanded its fleet of aircrafts by acquiring a number of Illusion Aircrafts which were all four-engined planes for purposes of long hauling. Since these aircrafts were all manufactured under Soviet technology, the situation necessitated the training of some of Ghana’s pilots in the then Soviet Union to enable them fly and man these aircrafts, His Excellency observed. His Excellency asserted, however, that presently, the Government of Ghana was no longer involved in the training of pilots, but those would-be pilots and for that matter the airlines sponsor their own private training in Schools in Europe and America.

7. Recalling that Ghana – Serbia (former Yugoslavia) relations will be hitting fifty years pretty shortly, His Excellency noted that changes in government over the years in Ghana had not affected those cordial relations in any way. He disclosed that Ghanaian students had, in the past, been trained in the fields of architecture, agricultural, engineering, and medicine, amongst others, in Serbian (former Yugoslavia) Universities, and therefore looked forward to Ghana and Serbia renewing this type of cooperation in addition to cooperation in the aviation sector, in the near future. His Excellency expressed his gratitude to the Deputy Director of the Academy for the audience and assured that the competent Ghanaian authorities would be apprised of the activities of the Flight Academy. TOUR OF THE OFFICES, CLASSROOMS AND THE AIRPORT

8. Accompanied by the Chief of the Maintenance Department, Mr. Jovan Milic, the Deputy Director conducted His Excellency round the offices, classrooms, hotel / hostel and the canteen of the Academy. His Excellency was shown the lecture rooms for the Students which previously accommodated twenty (20) students but had currently been reduced to 12 students per lecture room, in conformity with new European Union regulations. In addition, His Excellency visited the Documentation Centre of the Administration Block, the Library and the Conference / Seminar Hall, all of which were well-equipped.

9. At the airport, His Excellency was led on the tour by Senior Instructor, Mr. Tomislav Radic, who had served at the Academy in that capacity for ten (10) years. He took His Excellency through the procedures of flying by Students, which includes the varied types of practice training (copy of the Training Programmes list and the respective costs is attached).

10. Mr. Radic disclosed that the Academy’s programmes were based on a multi-year experience in training air pilots, and that the Academy owned a fleet of thirty-three (33) aircrafts, out of which twenty-five (25) were single-engined aircrafts and the remaining eight (8) were twin-engined (please see the attached brochure for details).

11. Having been escorted onboard the Cessna-310 (one of the numerous single-engined aircrafts) to have a feel of its make and operations, His Excellency was further taken round the other two hangars to see the various aircrafts, after which he proceeded to the Simulating building to have a look at the Simulators available. Whilst there, His Excellency was taking through the pre-flight techniques and post-flight analysis. There were classrooms for these lessons. Also available at the Simulating building was a Flight Planning Room, where the necessary planning was undertaken prior to any flight.

12. His Excellency rounded off the tour with a visit to the seventy-six (76) bed Hotel of the Academy where the students were accommodated at an affordable rate of Euro 15 per day. The Academy, also, has additional hostel facilities with a bar and restaurant. COMMENTS 13. Considering the rigorous training programmes run at the Academy, coupled with the facilities at its disposal, not to mention the cost-effective nature of these programmes, it would serve the country and for that matter the airline industry in Ghana, a great deal of benefit in terms of cost and quality training if, in the near future, trainee Ghanaian would-be pilots were enrolled at the JAT Flight Academy here in Serbia. It needs be placed on record that the Academy trains over 70% of pilots flying in the National Airline Company of Serbia (former Yugoslavia), JAT Airways, which is one of the safest airline companies in the world.

14. Besides, the Academy ranks among the top three largest piloting academies in Europe.

15. His Excellency also had the opportunity to interact with two (2) Nigerian Students who had enrolled at the Flight Academy. 16. Attached, herewith, are copies of the following: DVD on the activities of the Academy Training Programmes and Price List Brochures on the Flight Academy