Wings ceremony marks 25 years of flying high

Massey University’s School of Aviation will award its latest cohort of aviation students with their Wings brevet next week, marking a quarter of a century of producing aviators with a difference.

School of Aviation chief executive Ashok Poduval says Wings ceremonies are always special, but 2012 will be even more so because the school is celebrating its silver jubilee.

“It’s a milestone year for the school, and I am enormously proud of its record,” he says. “Today our students have the benefit of graduating with a relevant degree when they complete their studies. I can say, with confidence, that our graduates have the necessary competencies to enable them to move directly into commercial air transport operations.”

The School of Aviation has come a long way since the first cohort at the Massey Aviation Institute, as it was known then, received their brevets at the Wings ceremony in 1988. There were 28 students on that course. This year, there are 326 students studying towards a Bachelor of Aviation Management, 130 studying towards a Bachelor of Aviation – Air Transport Pilot, and 37 pursuing postgraduate degrees, including six doctorates.

Students working towards the Bachelor of Aviation – Air Transport Pilot receive their Wings once they have completed the practical and academic requirements to become a professional pilot. They obtain a commercial pilot’s licence with a multi-engine instrument rating, and credits for an Air Transport Pilot’s licence.

“What’s unique about Massey’s programme is that our students get a university education, not just vocational training, with rigorous academic components,” says Mr Poduval.

“They leave with a clear understanding of the aviation industry, including its business aspects. They gain strategic management skills and a good knowledge of the complexities of this vibrant industry – that’s why we say we produce aviators with a difference.”

The purchase of two twin-engine Diamond DA42 and 12 Diamond DA40 single-engine aircraft in 2009 put Massey at the forefront of professional pilot training in New Zealand. The aircraft, which ensures students are learning on the industry’s latest technology, have digital instrumentation, moving map displays, terrain awareness warnings, and traffic avoidance systems.

Mr Poduval says the school’s scenario-based training methods are also unique. “We are not just getting students to practice manoeuvres; we give them real-life, scripted scenarios so they can relate the skills they have learned to real-life situations.”

This year’s graduates will move on to careers as pilots, air safety investigators, airport managers, flight dispatchers and airline managers. “We are making a global contribution from our base in New Zealand,” says Mr Poduval.

Next week’s Wings ceremony will also see the rarely-awarded Skywards Award for Outstanding Airmanship presented to graduate flight instructor Ben Rae. In January Mr Rae successfully landed an aircraft experiencing problems with its ailerons, the hinged flaps attached to a plane’s wings that help control an aircraft in roll.

He had been conducting a lesson on aileron rolls when student Sam Henderson noticed the ailerons seemed stiff. Mr Rae took control of the plane and handled the potentially dangerous situation calmly and professionally, landing the aircraft safely.

The guest speaker at the ceremony will be Warren Larsen, an Air New Zealand company director and chairman of the airline’s safety committee.

The School of Aviation’s Wings graduation ceremony takes place at Massey University’s Sport and Rugby Institute at 3.30pm on Friday June 29, 2012.