Asian Aviation Centre (Sri Lanka)
Encyclopedia
| Type | Flight school, Aeronautical Engineering College |
| Motto | Dreams Realised |
| Founded | 1985 |
| Base | Ratmalana, Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the... |
| Key Personnel | Chairperson: Chandran Rutnam Chandran Rutnam Chandran Rutnam is a well known film maker from Sri Lanka and was more than 38 years in Los Angeles. He is of mixed minority Tamil and majority Sinhalese ancestry... Managing Director: Nihara Jayatilleke |
| Website | www.aac.lk |
Asian Aviation Centre (AAC) is the pioneering
Pioneering
In the Scout Movement, pioneering is the art of using ropes and wooden spars joined by lashings and knots to create a structure. Pioneering can be used for constructing small items such as camp gadgets up to larger structures such as bridges and towers. These may be recreational, decorative, or...
private sector
Private sector
In economics, the private sector is that part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is run by private individuals or groups, usually as a means of enterprise for profit, and is not controlled by the state...
aeronautical engineering and flying
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
academy in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
.
History
The mastermindMastermind
-In psychology:* Genius* Mastermind , one of the 16 role variants that the Keirsey Temperament Sorter is based on* INTJ , a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator-In games:* Mastermind, classic board game...
ed of the Asian Aviation Centre is veteran film producer and art lover Chandran Rutnam
Chandran Rutnam
Chandran Rutnam is a well known film maker from Sri Lanka and was more than 38 years in Los Angeles. He is of mixed minority Tamil and majority Sinhalese ancestry...
who dreamt of conquering the aviation
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
field.
Chandran Rutnam stated, "I was the sort of guy who would go to an Airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
and watch the planes taking off. I remember as a kid, I went to the Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
port and watched the ships coming and going out. I do not know whether it was wonder, luck or freedom of movement. I do not know which one it was. Some years ago a friend of mine and I decided that we should have an airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
."
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
s started, "It all started with hiring helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
s from Air Force
Air force
An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or...
to do a film on Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. I was absolutely fascinated by these helicopters."
It is this fascination that led not only to the birth of one of the successful domestic airlines, the Lion Air, but also the Asian Aviation Centre (AAC),the premier Aeronautic and Flying Academy in Sri Lanka. AAC is one of the few privileged Aeronautic Academies in the world with an Airline to have a hand on practice for students.
In the hope of realizing his cherished dream, Rutnam explored the possibility of procuring helicopters with a like minded friend and found out that it was beyond their means. So, the idea was put on back burner for some time. However, Rutnam did not completely give up the idea. With a tip off on those two Russian
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
built helicopters in Maldives
Maldives
The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
, enthusiastic Rutnam moved into action and bought the two helicopters with the intention of starting a scheduled helicopter service.
As Chandran Rutnam realized that it was not commercially viable to start a helicopter service with two helicopters, he shelved off the idea but decided to go for fixed wing aircraft, thus laying the foundation for the domestic airline Lion Air. With aircraft bought from Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
, Lion Air commenced its operation in 1994.
However, in 1998, flying was banned following the shooting down of an aircraft belonging to Lion Air over the northern skies and Rutnam was faced with the tight spot of looking after a large number of employees. Since flying was banned, Rutnam decided to set up a flying school with the resources at hand.
With the assistance of Avian Upali Wanasinghe, who was formerly the Commandant of Kotalawala Defence Academy, Wing Commander Bandula Tennakoon, Commodore Ananda Samarakoon and former Air vice Marshal Paddy Mendis, Rutnam started the school. The school was started as an Engineering College.
At the commencement, the school had a student population of over 280 students, most of them after graduation from the school proceeded to Kingston University
Kingston University
Kingston University is a public research university located in Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, United Kingdom. It was originally founded in 1899 as Kingston Technical Institute, a polytechnic, and became a university in 1992....
in UK to complete the degree in one year.
"It always occurred while I was having meals, occasionally, the captain would come out of the cockpit
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
and say that I graduated from your school. It was a satisfying feeling, that students are finding in this place. So it was one of the most rewarding enterprises that I have been involved in, educating the youth of this country," said Chandran Ratnam with a sense of justifiable elation.
At a time, when Lion Air was operating from Ratmalana within a limited space, Chandran Rutnam noticed a lovely and spacious hanger
Hanger
Hanger or hangers may refer to:* Clothes hanger, device in the shape of human shoulders or legs used to hang clothes on* Hanger steak, a tender cut of steak* Casing hanger, part of a wellhead assembly in oil drilling...
with two helicopters in Ratmalana. Soon Rutnam found out that the company was for sale and Rutnam bought the company.
The flight school which had been established in 1985, was incorporated into the Engineering College, marking the birth of Asian Aviation Centre (AAC).
Academic courses
The AAC covers almost all the aspects of Aeronautical Engineering from re-building aircraft to the intricate mechanisms of aircraft. The AAC also offers a host of recreation facilities for students including a tennisTennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
court and aero-club. Heterogeneous students' population consists of local and foreign students.
The Flight Training School of AAC offers private pilot license, commercial pilot license, multi-engine aircraft license, a pre-requisite to join Sri Lankan Airline and Local Aircraft Maintaining Engineering License which is approved by the Director General of Civil Aviation
Civil aviation
Civil aviation is one of two major categories of flying, representing all non-military aviation, both private and commercial. Most of the countries in the world are members of the International Civil Aviation Organization and work together to establish common standards and recommended practices...
.
In addition, AAC also offers a Diploma conferred by the Kangam Batman TAFE in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and a degree from UK for those who have industrial experience. The students who secured classes for their degrees, will get the opportunity of paid industrial training in UK. This will save a lot of foreign exchange
Foreign exchange reserves
Foreign-exchange reserves in a strict sense are 'only' the foreign currency deposits and bonds held by central banks and monetary authorities. However, the term in popular usage commonly includes foreign exchange and gold, Special Drawing Rights and International Monetary Fund reserve positions...
, as Aeronautical studies incurred heavy fees anywhere in the world.