Mr Slobodan Cvijan’s Speech

The Speech of Mr Slobodan Cvijan, Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services (SMATSA) llc CEO.

Mr Slobodan Cvijan’s Speech

28.06.2013

Your Excellencies, our distinguished guests,

It is my great honour and pleasure to address Your Excellencies from African and Arab countries, the representatives of the Government of the Republic of Serbia and of the city of Vršac, representatives of the Civil Aviation Directorate of the Republic of Serbia, „Nikola Tesla“ Airport and of JAT Airways, and other friends of our company, and to wish you a warm welcome to SMATSA Aviation Academy in Vršac.

First of all, I would like to point out that Vršac has a long aviation history. The first flight on the slopes of Mt. Vršac was performed in as far as 1912, only nine years after the first flight of the Wright brothers. Glider flying here began in 1934, and in 1954 Vršac became the official State Aeronautical Centre in the former SFRY. In 1972 this centre became JAT pilot school (known as Jat Airways Flight Academy) and started training airline transport pilots, both national and foreign. Upon taking over of JAT Flight Academy in September 2010, SMATSA continued this tradition and initiated a series of activities in order to maintain and upgrade the level of pilot training services.

There are three runways available for training in the Academy – one concrete and two grass runways, serving solely for the purpose of pilot training. The aerodrome itself is far enough from the main airways, which is a prerequisite for the training of ab-initio pilots, but is also close to the international airport in Belgrade, providing excellent conditions for sophisticated phases of training. Professional Pilot Training in SMATSA Aviation Academy is conducted in compliance with the relevant European aviation authorities standards, and the licences issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Republic of Serbia are accepted in EU countries with no additional conditions or requirements, as well as in ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) member states.

The Academy has its own fleet of trainer aircraft, consisting of 18 single-engine aircraft, type Cessna-172, and two twin-engine aircraft, type Cessna-310. Eight completely new single-engine aircraft, Cessna-172, were purchased last year. These aircraft are equipped with the most sophisticated instruments with so-called glass cockpit technology and state-of-the-art flight aids for pilot training.

Training programmes are developed on the basis of extensive experience in airline transport pilot training. Over 80% of pilots flying for the Serbian national airline have been trained in this Academy. Apart from them, pilots from more than 30 airlines from all over the world have been trained here. To date the Academy has trained more that 2,000 pilots, 341 of whom being from foreign countries: 120 pilots from the State of Libya, 63 from the Republic of Angola, 15 from the Republic of Mali, 20 from the Republic of Guinea, 17 from the Republic of Malta, 36 from the Republic of Turkey, 14 from the Republic of Iraq, and 56 from the Republic of India. SMATSA Aviation Academy is one of the three largest pilot training organisations in Europe, whose training programmes are identical to the ones approved by European aviation authorities.

SMATSA Aviation Academy is equipped with the most modern training aids and equipment: apart from the aircraft, it has various navigation aids installed at the aerodrome and in its vicinity, state-of-the-art flight simulator capable of making up for as high as 40% of certain phases of training, as well as offices and classrooms equipped with modern training aids, computer equipment and the latest editions of relevant literature and books.

The SMATSA Aviation Academy has been certified for provision of training pertaining to 15 different pilot licences, the most popular being the Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL) enabling the candidates to continue their pilot training for different aircraft types such as Boing, Airbus, Fokker, Bombardier….

In addition to Private Pilot Licence (PPL), Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) and Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) rating trainings, we were the first one in the region to introduce the distant learning for PPL. This kind of training has been tailored to suit business people’s needs and the needs of the candidates who are not in position to attend everyday classes enabling them thus to obtain this type of licence in the way most convenient for them.

The technical maintenance of SMATSA Aviation Academy aircraft is performed by the experienced team of experts purposely trained at manufacturer’s premises and approved by the Civil Aviation Directorate of the Republic of Serbia. Besides the Academy needs, the Technical Department renders maintenance services to third parties from all European countries.

The Academy is also a certified center for the testing of pilots and air traffic controllers for the purpose of their (English) language endorsement which was introduced as obligatory in 2011. Until now, more than 1500 pilots from Serbia and neighboring countries have been tested here.

At present, 45 candidates coming from the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, our traditional friends, as well as 16 candidates coming from other countries (the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of Croatia, Montenegro, the Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the State of Libya and the Republic of Mali) together with 34 candidates from Serbia are being trained in the Academy.

I would especially like to emphasize that not only does SMATSA Llc. train pilots, but it also trains air traffic controllers. The training of air traffic controllers, all in accordance with international standards, has been performed for more than 40 years in the Training Centre in Belgrade, for SMATSA’s own needs, as well as the needs of other air navigation service providers. Furthermore, starting from 2009, SMATSA Llc. has been providing flight inspection services (calibration of radio navigation aids), by King Air 350 Beechcraft for its own requirements and the requirements of 6 neighboring countries.

The Aviation Academy has great plans for the future. First of all, we shall continue investing in the infrastructure of the aerodrome itself, the latest teaching aids and the education of our instructors and lecturers. All past and future accomplishments of SMATSA Llc. would make sense if airlines from the countries represented by Your Excellencies recognize the capacities of SMATSA Aviation Academy in Vršac and find their interest in training their pilots in Serbia. That is why, Your Excellencies, we have tried to present our Academy today and demonstrate, in the example of Algerian pilots, what we can do for the airlines in your countries. The pilots trained in Vršac now fly for a number of big companies in the countries you represent. They are, together with you, our best ambassadors. SMATSA Aviation Academy and the city of Vršac, famous for its hospitality to all nations and religions, are ready to offer the highest level of aviation training and provide safe and pleasant stay in Serbia.

I sincerely hope that you have enjoyed this short visit to our Academy and that you will convey your impressions about us in the countries you represent.

Thank you, once again, for coming to Vršac and joining us at SMATSA Aviation Academy.

 

Slobodan Cvijan,

CEO