Monrovia – The Managing Director and CEO of Liberty Airlines Captain Raynold A. Mitchell has cautioned the National Aviation Students Association of Liberia (NASAL) to be dedicated as they strive to take over the aviation sector in the nearest future.
Captain Mitchell made the remark during the NASAL Youth Career Development Seminar at the James Springs Paynes Airport on Friday November 1, 2019.
“Everything you want in life requires dedication and hard work. Being a pilot is a respectable job around the world,” Captain Mitchell told the aviation students.
NASAL, an aviation students’ organization, was established in January 11, 2018 as a means of encouraging young people get involve with the studies.
The Youths Career Development Seminar, which was organized and sponsored by Liberty Airlines, took place from October 30 to November 1, 2019.
The Managing Director of Liberty Airlines called on the students to strive for higher education, which he says is the requirement for being a professional pilot.
Captain Mitchell added: “You must be good when it comes to understanding geography, physic and mechanic. Your visual got to be good; your heart got to be good. You cannot be suffering from heart attack then you want to fly a plane.”
Also speaking, the Deputy Director General at the Liberia Civil Aviation Authority (LCAA) Captain Moses K. Weefur praised the students for forming an organization he says ready and willing to take over the aviation sector in the nearest future.
According to Captain Weefur, the aviation sector is diverse which is not only about being a pilot.
“Those of you who want to be a pilot but cannot, for some other reasons, there are whole lots of things you can do in the aviation industry,” the Deputy Director General of LCAA said.
At the same time, the supervisor for Department of Passenger Service at the James Spring Airport, Madam Tutu B. Yantay told the students that the passenger service sector is the “face of the airport”.
“You got to be smart and proactive. You need to get good posture and be decent. Keep the smiles on your face and you also need to have good outputs and good manner,” Madam Yantay told the students.
For his part, the president of NASAL Cyrus S. Kettor said after conducting series of surveys and they found that workers at both the Roberts International Airport and the James Springs Airport were aging and that there was a need to prepare the next generation.
“I want to become a pilot and the remaining five guys who started the organization with me want to become aircraft engineers. So, we came out with the idea to see how best we the younger ones can fill the gap after the old people leave the stage,” Kettor said.
“We need young people to replace the old people. The aviation industry is not like other jobs. You got to be schooled before you do the job,” NASAL president said.
With the help of the Liberty Airlines, two of the students of NASAL are acquiring foreign studies as “flight operation officer” and “flight dispatcher” at the university in Narobi, Kenya.