MANILA, Philippines - The brisk business of air travel is making careers in the many sectors of aviation bloom as tourism booms worldwide.
“Attribute it also to the globalizing world economic order that makes business trips and out-of-town meetings a normal part of corporate life, spawning a highly specialized tourism industry sector called MICE (meetings, incentive travel, conventions and events/exhibitions),†said retired Philippine Air Force Maj. Gen. Lino Lapinid of the University of Perpetual Help System School of Aviation.
“No wonder the airline industry keeps on expanding, with some countries having more than one national flag carrier, and our Filipino pilots and technicians getting pirated by foreign firms all over the world,†Lapinid said.
This phenomenon has placed the University of Perpetual Help System School of Aviation at the forefront of an industry facing an ever-increasing need for competent pilots, flight engineers, technicians, and other highly skilled support staff.
The aviation school, now headed by Lapinid as vice president for aviation affairs, has been producing graduates who get high-paying jobs in the Philippines and abroad. It is the only university-based aviation school offering full college-degree aviation courses.
Thus, the students develop superior skills through the school’s unmatched curricula and complete hands-on facilities that are a cut above the competition.
“In the University of Perpetual Help System School of Aviation, the students are taught the science, the practice and the business of aviation and avionics while being prepared to become qualified airmen and leaders in aircraft research, development, manufacturing, maintenance, operation and education, among many other fields,†Lapinid said.
“They undergo comprehensive training under a highly qualified faculty in a fully high-tech environment of world-class modern facilities,†Lapinid added.
The facilities include a fleet of Cessna and Piper Seneca V aircraft, fully functional mockup system for aircraft, fixed wing flight simulator approved by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and the US Federal Aviation Administration, engine test cell, sheet metal laboratory, hydraulic landing gear system trainer, ice and rain protection trainer, cabin atmosphere control and pressurization system, dual-turbine electrical system, and engine run-up stand, among others.
The training courses comply with the standards and all the requirements of the country’s Air Transportation Office, the International Engineering and Technological Standards Regulations in Aviation, and the CAAP.
The programs offered are Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering (BSAE), Bachelor of Science in Aircraft Maintenance Technology (BSAMT), Aviation Electronics Technology (AET), and Aircraft Maintenance Technology (AMT).
And despite all these high-standard education system and training facilities, the tuition, according to Lapinid, is affordable and with easy payment schemes.
There is year-round enrolment for private pilot license course involving ground course of 100 hours, flight simulator training of 10 hours, and flight instruction of 40 hours.
For commercial pilot license course, the ground course spans 150 hours, flight simulator training 20 hours, and flight instruction 150 hours.
All in all, the school curriculum in BSAE generates career opportunities for engineers in research and development, aircraft, structural, design, power plant, manufacturing, maintenance, operation and performance, interior, system, and tooling, and as consultants and professors in aeronautical engineering.
On the other hand, the AMT and Avionics graduates become qualified for jobs in aero-engineering, aerodynamics, aircraft interiors, aircraft mechanics, airline customer service, airport management, freight and baggage handling, airworthiness prequalification, apprenticeship, aviation design, cabin crew and ground crew, communication, electricals, fabrication, flight simulation, landing gear specialist, quality assurance and safety, and as pilots and instructors, among many others.
The school has campuses in Pamplona, Las Piñas City; Molino, Bacoor, Cavite; and Calamba, Laguna. For more information, call (02) 871-0639, 403-5194 or 874-0171 local 191.