| Azaraimy HH |
ABDUL Matin bin Madani, Arman bin Rosli and Yasmin Emilia binti Sheikh Rashid – three young local aspiring aviators, will soon embark on new chapters in their lives as trainee pilots for Royal Brunei Airlines (RB), following a signing ceremony for the 50th intake of the RB Cadet Pilot Programme yesterday at the Board Meeting Room, Simpur Building, RB Campus.
The three pilot cadets were chosen out of 82 shortlisted applicants from over 500 applicants, after undergoing and passing through a stringent assessment and election process.
Signing the agreement on behalf of RB were Karam Chand, Chief Executive Officer; Captain Saiful Bahrin Awang Bahar, Executive General Manager – Corporate Risks; and Kurt Harding, Executive General Manager of People and Performance.
The new cadets will commence their pilot training on May 21 with L3 Airline Academy – RB’s training partner – in New Zealand, with the course scheduled to be completed in July 2019.
RB has a total of 138 pilots under its workforce; 73 per cent of this comprise locals, made up of 34 local captains and 67 local first officers.
In his welcoming remarks, Karam Chand welcomed the three talented young Bruneians under RB’s wings as part of the company’s Cadet Pilot Intake 50.
“Today May 14 also marks a momentous day for RB as we celebrate the 43rd anniversary of our first flight in 1975,” the RB CEO said.
“In the coming weeks, RB will set off on an exciting journey as we will take delivery of our first Airbus A320neo aircraft. With the deliveries, our cadet pilots will be pleased to know, RB will have one of the youngest and most modern fleets in all of Asia.”
“Today is the beginning of a great new chapter in your lives and we are delighted that you have chosen to share this with us here in RB. I wish you all the best for your upcoming cadetship with our training partner in New Zealand and we look forward to seeing you in our flight deck,” the CEO added, addressing the new recruits.
In an interview, one of the cadets, Abdul Matin bin Madani, 24, expressed his appreciation at his selection, stressing that becoming a pilot is his childhood dream and his journey to becoming an RB Cadet Pilot has actually taken a long time.
“I first applied into the RB Cadet Pilot programme seven years ago but I found that I wasn’t eligible then, as one of the eligibility criteria was that candidates must not be wearing eyeglasses, so my dream to become a pilot cannot be realised then,” he said.
“One day however, during a job fair, I learnt that the rules have changed due to changes in flight technology, therefore applicants with less than perfect vision could be accepted.
“As a result I applied again and was eventually accepted as a candidate, and after going through the stringent assessment and selection process, which included a number of interviews and theoretical assessments, I was selected as a cadet pilot.”
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