THE Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA) has completed the first phase of the approval process for the establishment of a training college in Jamaica by the Air Transport Training College (ATTC)

of Singapore.

The ATTC is now a JCAA-approved training organisation (ATO), which is certified to train students in the necessary standards and competencies that are required to gain JCAA certification as an aircraft maintenance engineer. Having completed the programme, students must acquire practical experience before sitting the JCAA licensing exams.

The approval process, which started by the JCAA some six months ago, was quite detailed, ensuring that all JCAA requirements were met. The process included:

. review of qualifications and experience of important personnel, such as the lecturers and administrative heads;

. careful review of the manuals and training syllabus to ensure that they complied with JCAA regulations; and

. physical inspection of the Air Transport Training College workshops, classrooms and training aids by a JCAA inspector.

The Air Transport Training College is now finalising its Jamaican location, where a satellite facility will be used to conduct training. The JCAA Flight Safety Department will maintain its regulatory presence by monitoring the classes offered, the curriculum, and the facilities used.

The establishment of the college is an outcome of a visit to the Asian Airport Summit in 2008 by a Jamaican delegation headed by Transport and Works Minister Mike Henry.