MacroAsia, PTC to put up aviation school

MacroAsia Corporation (MAC) and PTC Holdings Corporation (“PTC”) have signed a Joint Venture Agreement/Shareholders’ Agreement (JVA/SHA) to put up an integrated aviation career and resource development company.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, MAC and PTC will incorporate a joint venture company (JVC) with an equity sharing of 51 percent for MAC and 49 percent for PTC.

The JVC will initially invest about US$3 million (R150 million) to establish a training and skills assessment center for aviation professionals called “First Aviation Academy Inc. It will be equipped with simulators and aircraft for training use and operations.

The training facility will be based in Subic Bay International Airport and will start its operations by first half of 2018. Initially, it will pursue pilot training, certification and career development courses in the field of aviation.

The partnership aims to address the foreseen shortage of aviation professionals for airline clients not only in the Philippines but also in other countries.

The school will start with 3 aircrafts two single-engine light aircraft, and one twin-engine light aircraft. It will also have two simulators which have dual and control-loading yoke system and dual rudder pedals for simultaneous pilot and co-pilot control.

FAA’s curriculum will include more than 200 flying hours using the single and twin engine aircraft which is more than what is currently being offered in the industry.

Also, geared with its commitment to create a link for employment for aviation professionals and airline companies, FAA is working on partnerships with different airlines in order to support this.

The school is optimistic to produce more than 300 pilots and achieve conservatively about US$17-million cumulative revenue for the first five years of its operations.

Based on forecasts from aircraft manufacturers, there will be shortage of more than 600,000 pilots by year 2035. Largely, this is based from the growth in regional carriers, increasing preference for air travel in Asia and the current low rate of pilots entering the profession.

In fact, the center of gravity of air travel is shifting towards Asia, and ASEAN has and will contribute significantly to this shift based on the recent report of IATA (2017-2035).