KUCHING: Sarawak needs more helicopter pilots.
LICENSED TO FLY: (From third left) Victor and Souness show their parents their pilot licences.
Minister in the Chief Minister’s Office, Datin Fatimah Abdullah said this was due to the fact that helicopters were among the main mode of transport linking rural areas in the state.
“In the context of Sarawak, the use of helicopters as transport to rural areas is a need, and we encourage young people to be involved in the field.
“We believe, with the presence of pilots among locals, it would be much easier to move around as they are well versed with the places in the state, compared with pilots from other states or countries,” she said.
She was officiating at the presentation of training certificates here yesterday.
The training programme was jointly organised by Sarawak Foundation and Hornbill Skyways Sdn Bhd.
The foundation’s director said RM102 million had been allocated to train helicopter pilots and engineers.
According to him, RM2 million from the allocation was used to sponsor two selected trainees.
Training for the first batch – comprising Victor Howell from Kuching and Souness Peter from Miri – was conducted from July 2008 to October this year.