Odisha HRD

Information on pilot training course at Government Aviation Training Institute (GATI) in Bhubaneswar (from Telegraph)

Following are excerpts from Shilpi Sampad’s report in Telegraph.

Institute: The Government Aviation Training Institute, popularly known as Gati, is the only pilot training institute in the state, which is run by the government. It is located on the premises of Biju Patnaik Airport, Bhubaneswar.

Course: It offers two programmes – Private Pilot License and Commercial Pilot License, and runs three batches per year with a maximum of 30 trainees in each batch. The next batch starts from October. Interested candidates can start applying.

Important: A medical fitness certificate from a director general civil aviation (DGCA)-approved doctor is mandatory for admission.

Private Pilot License (PPL): It is a six-month course and the fee is nearly Rs 6 lakh. The minimum qualification is matriculation. PPL involves 50 hours of flying.

Commercial Pilot License (CPL): The course lasts for 18 to 22 months and costs around Rs 19 lakh. The minimum eligibility is Plus Two with pass marks in physics and mathematics. Aspirants from non-science background can take provisional admission and appear for the two subjects through open school exam. CPL involves 200 hours of flying.

Common features: For both courses, 350 hours of compulsory ground classes precede the flying. The classes include theoretical lessons in air regulation, air navigation, aviation meteorology, technical general and technical specific. After attending the required hours of ground classes, a trainee earns a Student Pilot License (SPL) and Flight Radio Telephony Operating License (FRTOL) for solo flying. Candidates, who wish to attend only these classes and pursue flying at any other institute, have to pay a course fee of Rs 1.35 lakh.

Flying training: There are four aircraft – two each of Cessna 152 (two-seater) and Cessna 172 (four-seater). There are three runways for flying operations in Bhubaneswar, Hirakud (Sambalpur) and Gopalpur (Ganjam).

Reservation: Applicants belonging to SC/ST categories can avail 100 per cent scholarships provided by the central government. Fifty per cent seats are reserved for domicile candidates but the share of students from the state is low. …

Loan and accommodation: Applicants can avail bank loans easily for studying at Gati. The academy also helps the pilot trainees find accommodation in nearby areas.

Scope: After completing the course, one has plenty of opportunities at hand to get employed in the areas of airlines, corporate charters, coast guard, paramilitary, state government / public sector units and so on. To add to their experience, they can become instructors at flying schools. Those who have done the private pilot license course can fly privately owned aircraft. The institute is also in touch with several corporate houses for placement opportunities.

The highlighted part should be publicized in places like KISS so that many of the students there are aware of this option.

2 comments July 24th, 2011

Odisha’s second flying training institute being explored in Rangeilunda near Berhampur

Following is an excerpt from a PTI report.

Plans are afoot to develop Orissa’s second flying training institute at Rangeilunda airstrip near here.

The ministry of Civil Aviation wants to use Rangeilunda airstrip as a flying training institute. Binodini Devi, a senior captain from the ministry, visited the airstrip recently and discussed the project with engineers of the works department here, Ganjam district collector V K Pandian said.

… A senior pilot of the ministry also visited the site last week and asked the works engineer to develop it as a Visual Flight Rule (VFR) airstrip and to provide at least two rooms to conduct the pilot training institute.

"We have agreed to provide all necessary infrastructure facilities to the ministry to use Rangeilunda airstrip as a flying training institute," K Pandian said.

3 comments May 30th, 2010