Perth College flying high after sealing Brunei aviation partnership

As part of the international agreement with the Sultan of Brunei’s aircraft organisation, about 20 students will arrive in Perth from the southeast Asian country to study on the UK’s only course still offering graduates the opportunity to work in European aerospace.

Perth College UHI’s wholly owned partner, Air Service Training (Engineering) Limited (AST),

holds both UK CAA and European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) approvals. This allows the degree programme to be classified as an approved course for producing engineers qualified to maintain CAA and EASA registered aircraft both in the UK and around the world.

Students on the course will also have the opportunity to work with Scottish airline Loganair on technology that could lead to electric-powered planes.

The formal partnership with His Majesty’s The Sultan’s Flight also has the backing of the Brunei ministry of education, giving the country’s students access to the University of the Highlands and Islands engineering and maintenance degree, delivered by Perth College UHI.

Students studying the aircraft engineering course have access to a range of aircraft and helicopters at Perth Airport to ensure they are equipped with a high level of practical skills. Perth College UHI also has a flight simulator.

Lin Shen, team leader international at Perth College UHI, said: “His Majesty the Sultan’s Flight (HMSF) was formed in September 1979 as a royal aviation unit to handle all air transport for His Majesty and the Royal Family in Brunei. Now it’s a corporate entity with its own aircraft.

“The ministry of education sponsors the students chosen from Brunei to study the engineering course in Scotland and they are then expected to return to Brunei to work as EASA approved aircraft engineers after their graduation.

“The degree is now in its third year, and we have never had an overseas partnership of this scale for this course.

“We are delighted that our degree is receiving international recognition and that we will be playing our part in the recovery of the aviation industry.”

Perth College UHI is a member of the University of the Highlands and Islands.

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