Bristow Earmarks N500m On Training Local Pilots

Bristow Helicopters Nige
ria Limited has earmarked over N500 million on the training of 20 Nigerians as cadet pilots overseas.
Managing Director of the company, Captain Akin Oni who disclosed this in Lagos, said that the 20 cadet pilots would be sent to the United States for one year training at the academy run by the Bristow Group in Florida.
Oni explained that Bristow had trained over 300 Nigerians as helicopter pilots in the past 30 years, in line with its capacity building programme to enhance indigenous manpower in the aviation sector.
He said Bristow Helicopters will continue to invest in the training of pilots as part of its contributions to improve indigenous competences and competitiveness in the industry.
“We have to train our own indigenous pilots to replace the expatriates in the sector, we will support them and they will work for us globally in the world, we have branches everywhere all over the world where they can work”, he said.
According to him, Bristow is also partnering with the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria, Kaduna State and the International Aviation College, Ilorin for ground studies and basic flying rule where Bristow sends students to have first experience in flying before sending them overseas for helicopter pilot training.
The Managing Director expressed regret that some indigenous pilots are unable to secure employment in the aviation sector because they don’t have expected number of flying hours, while some are unable to pass competence tests.
Captain Oni noted that due to the failure of the Nigerian pilots to accumulate up to the mandatory 150 hours required of them to demonstrate command on any aircraft, it would be difficult to get them engaged.
The Bristow boss disclosed that the airline is carrying out the manpower development programme in compliance with the local content policy of the federal government to create opportunities for qualified Nigerians to run critical sectors of the economy.
He maintained that the airline spends more money to engage expatriate pilots, who are not necessarily more competent, adding that when the expatriates are engaged the company spends huge amount of money on security to protect them.