New Planes For East African Civil Aviation Academy

By TEA Reporter,

THE Government is to buy six new aircrafts for the East African Civil Aviation Academy - that is commonly referred to as Soroti Flying School.

Edith Mwanje, the East African Community affairs ministry permanent secretary, said this during a regional workshop for central Uganda leaders at Hotel Africana in Kampala last week.

She said the procurement of the new planes would be done under a three-year capital development project designed by the Government to rehabilitate the academy.

The six computerised single-engine planes would cost sh4b. The first batch of the aircrafts arrives this financial year, she added.

The single engine Cessna 172 aircraft has modern aviation technology. Which, Mwanje said, would equip and acquaint the pilot students with the required aviation skills.

The school has 58 privately sponsored students using the old Cessna aircraft manufactured in the early 1960s.

The academy was built as a training school for the British Overseas Airways Corporation to train British pilots in tropical flying techniques. It was later used by the East African Flying Academy to train pilots from the former community.

“Since the collapse of the East African community in 1977, this school has been neglected. However, with its revival, plans are under way to renovate it at a cost of US$900,000 (about Ush 1.73b),” Mwanje added.

The project also includes renovation of the old buildings and acquisition of new computers.