–President Ali gives green light for team to develop a possible plan for this initiative, as Guyana receives new aircraft

PRESIDENT, Dr. Irfaan Ali, on Saturday, said he has granted authoritisation for the conceptualisation of a local modern military and civil aviation school, which would benefit the entire Caribbean.

“I have authorised work to be concluded before the third quarter in this year to have a full presentation to the Defence Board of a military and civil aviation school to be run by the air corps, to be managed by the Air Corps,” the President Ali said.

The Head of State made this announcement during the commissioning of the Guyana Defence Force’s (GDF)’s 8R-1GY (KingAir350) aircraft and the new 8R-AYA 412 helicopter.

President Ali said that they hope to have all of the formalities completed before the end of 2023, so that by 2024’s first quarter, the aviation school would be in full operation, both for the GDF, military and security personnel in the Caribbean region, and also to train civilian pilots and commercial pilots in Guyana.

“We are sparing no effort in ensuring that we put our Guyana Defence Force and the Air Corps in the frontline of modernisation and transformation, and creating an environment in which we are second to none,” he related.

President Ali said that this vision requires transformation in thinking and their approach to work and the workplace culture.

“The workforce culture must change and change rapidly. Aviation requires additional discipline, additional responsibility and we are going to hold the leadership of Air Corps accountable,” he said.

The Head of State said that this is not the time to be laid back, but a time for the military to be transformative in what they do.

“I am confident that we have the skills, the capacity, the talent in Air Corps to achieve all of which we set ourselves to achieve. Your country has invested tremendously in you,” Dr. Ali said.
Further, the President related that they must break the tradition of losing highly skilled personnel, after they would have invested heavily in training and building capacity.

He said that there are plans to reach out to retired Air Corps officers and those regionally, as they seek to build one of the most modern advanced aviation schools.

“We can only do so if we create a comprehensive pathway for career development also. Those who are pilots and engineers, those who are safety officers must see their journey not ending after retirement, but see right in Air Corps, the ability to transition into a new form or service and that is what the school will allow us to do,” Dr. Ali related.

He said that this is a comprehensive and holistic strategy in which they must be serious about, as they are not going to “idle” their way around the transformation of the Air Corps.

The Head of State expressed his expectancy of a deep sense of responsibility and commitment towards the transformation they wish to see.

“We are committed to your development. We are committed to the development of the Air Corps and the Guyana Defense Force, but you must also be committed in what you do,” President Ali said.