RIYADH, 24 August 2003 — The growing call for a new generation of Saudi technicians and pilots to be trained in the Kingdom rather than abroad has led to the assignment of Western experts for in-house training schemes here.

Meanwhile, four aircraft manufacturers from the US, Britain and France, along with major Saudi organizations, have pooled their resources to establish a college, to be called Al-Faisal University, which will also offer courses in aviation technology, besides hands-on pilot training.

In July, 39 Saudi employees of BAE Systems in Tabuk started Hawk aircraft training conducted by the BAE Systems Technical Academy in Warton, northern England, Dave Holtby, the Academy’s training manager, announced on Thursday.

Walid Abukhaled, head of BAE communications in Riyadh, told Arab News the company was committed to technology transfer. He said it had formed strategic alliances with Saudi aviation companies like Al-Salam Aircraft Co., Advanced Electronics Co. of Riyadh and Aircraft Accessories Co. of Jeddah to hone the technical skills of young Saudis in aircraft repairs and maintenance.

“Instead of sending Saudia aircraft abroad for repair, they can now be maintained in the Kingdom. This is a major achievement of young Saudis in the aviation sector,” he said.

The Academy has been training Saudis since the early 1970s. However, since 1985 many technicians connected with the Al-Yamamah program have been seconded to the Academy.

The Academy, which has trained many members of the Royal Saudi Air Force and Saudi staff working for BAE Systems, took the opportunity to unveil its training plans for a new generation of aircraft.

“In addition to bringing young Saudi trainees here, there is also a growing trend to second our training specialists to Saudi Arabia,” Holtby said, adding: “Their technical knowledge is utilized by the Al-Yamamah Saudi Offset Program to deliver more training within Saudi Arabia. This will increase the pace of Saudization and provide a cost-efficient training package for the Saudi government.”

Holtby said the Academy’s future plans included developing online electronic learning and distributive learning capabilities.

BAE Systems has also been involved, along with the King Faisal Foundation, in setting up the SR100 million Al-Faisal University in Riyadh. Other members from the aviation field include Boeing Technologies and United Technologies of the US and Thales (formerly Thomson-CSF) of France.

The university, to be located in King Faisal Palace in Riyadh, will offer courses in avionics and other high-tech disciplines.