Govt building robust aviation ecosystem: CM Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday said his government is building a robust aviation ecosystem by providing quality, affordable and world-class training aligned with industry needs.

Mann said the state will be positioned as a major hub of the aviation industry in the coming years while interacting with aircraft engineers and trainees at the Patiala Flying Club, according to an official release.

Emphasising that his government’s focus is to create job providers rather than job seekers, Mann said the upcoming aviation museum at the Patiala Aviation Complex, built at Rs 7 crore, will not only preserve India’s flying heritage but also inspire the new generation.

Mann said he was elated to be here for a dialogue session with the students taking training from this prestigious institute at Patiala Flying Club, with 32 trainee pilots and 72 students from Patiala Aircraft Maintenance Engineering College.

“Among the 32 trainee pilots, most belong to the first generation in their families entering the aviation sector. In private institutes, it costs Rs 40 to Rs 45 lakh to become a commercial pilot, while at the Patiala Flying Club, there is about a 50 per cent subsidy, reducing the fee to Rs 22 to Rs 25 lakh,” the chief minister said.

With a reduction of fee by nearly Rs 20 lakh, students from ordinary households like shopkeepers, teachers, farmers, clerks and others can now dream of becoming pilots. According to the release, a new website of the Department of Civil Aviation was also launched on the occasion.

Mann said the Patiala State Aviation Council, Punjab, aims to give every child a chance to fulfil their dream of flying high in the sky. The aviation museum at Patiala will showcase MiG aircraft, second-generation helicopters, simulators, and aviation heritage, he said.

The Patiala Flying Club has broken the decades-long barrier, where training to become a pilot was possible only for the very wealthy, he said.  The club was established in 1965 and spans 253 acres, making it one of the largest aviation training campuses in India, Mann said. He said the club ranks seventh nationwide and currently it operates seven training aircraft, including five single-engine planes, two multi-engine planes and one Tecnam P2006T (newly added, purchased from Italy for Rs 5 crore).

For them, Mann said that the Punjab government offers affordable technical education at Patiala Aircraft Maintenance Engineering (AME) College, which runs India’s most economical AME and B.Sc (Hons) programs.