Correia Group facilitates overseas pilot training for two more employees

Sep 14, 2012 News

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By Zena Henry

As a means of remedying the current shortage of pilots and the lack of adequate flight training available in Guyana, two persons under the Correia Group of Companies are headed for Miami, USA, to participate in the company’s annual overseas pilot training programme.
Yesterday signaled the launch of the one-year-old programme which has so far seen two company employees earning certificates in the field of aviation and flight operations. According to company official Christopher ‘Kit’ Nascimento, “the initiative started on a trial basis last year, and had two pilot trainees receiving licences. They are now at the second phase of their training.”
Nascimento emphasised that the company in this regard has prided itself for offering the pilot training course within its organization. He explained that it was the idea of the Chief Executive Officer, Michael Correia Jr., that the pilot vacancies be filled by employees within its organization to fulfill the 24-pilot requirement to meet the Trans Guyana Airways five-year expansion project.
Trans Guyana Airways, an arm of the Correia Group of Companies, has eight planes flying 22 domestic flights daily and servicing hinterland communities all over Guyana. There are also two daily flights to Suriname.

Nascimento explained that the flight routes within Guyana are no ordinary ones. He stressed that, “a staff of highly trained, fully experienced pilots dedicated and committed to delivering a safe and efficient service under special conditions is required for hinterland flying.”
Nicole Correia, the Chief Financial Officer of the Correia Group of Companies, detailed that the company sought to recruit within its organization to meet the challenge of developing new pilots. She pointed out that there is a shortage of pilots and a lack of flight training available in Guyana.
Correia mentioned that foreign pilots were hired, but that had not proved feasible for the company in the long run. She added that it was then the initiative of developing Guyanese in the area of aviation came about.
“There is a current shortage of pilots and a lack of adequate flight training available in Guyana. We had looked at hiring foreign pilots that had the experience and qualification to fill an immediate need, but over the long term, this was really not a viable solution. We wanted to have committed Guyanese who were already committed to our company; who were looking for further growth and development within the company and felt that we could provide this to them for a win-win solution.”
Peter Dos Ramos and Jonathan Mohamed will be the second batch to head to Florida in October for training at Flight Safety International, which, according to Correia, is rated among the best pilot training schools in the United States.
Ramos and Mohamed had joined the company as a Management Information Systems (MIS) technician and an Aeronautical engineer, respectively. Both men told media personnel that they were thrilled to be heading on such a venture, never knowing how they would have personally been able to fulfill their dreams of becoming pilots had it not been for the opportunity granted by their place of employment.
Andre Farinha, Chief Pilot, started off his career at the Correia Group of Companies as an accountant. He explained that the trainees go through a strict process before they could command an aircraft. He said that after the one-year of the foreign programme, the trainees receive their recognized pilot licence. He, however, said that training does not stop there as the returning pilots go through another year of supervision where they get additional experience in the aviation field.
“The trainees are seated on the left side while the captain or senior pilot sits on the right. They must go through another year of training to gain the experience before they could command an aircraft.”
The company, however, expressed the need for more funds to be invested by Government on the improvement of interior airstrips. Nascimento was at the time pointing out that the aviation industry feeds off the mining, agriculture and tourism sectors. He said that Guyana is growing and developing so there is a need for more pilots for transportation to interior areas. He further mentioned that aircraft companies will focus more on arguably the most lucrative sector which is mining, and thus investing their private capital for the benefit of that sector, as they had invested in the Ogle Airport.
Nascimento advised that mechanisms should be put place to address the brain drain situation of pilots in Guyana. He argued that continued training and dedication would alleviate the situation.

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