Abu Dhabi: Etihad Airways on Tuesday honoured UAE graduates from its Future Leaders Programme.
The graduating class featured 280 UAE nationals, of whom 86 are cadet pilots, 82 technical engineers, 37 graduate managers, 13 airport operations managers, five sales managers, 53 Fursati foundation programme graduates and four graduates from the Sabre programme.
The star performer awards for 2015 were presented to Mohammad Ali (cadet pilot); Khalifa Al Hosani (cadet pilot — Abu Dhabi University); Jasem Al Hammadi (technical engineer); Al Shaima Al Ameri (graduate manager); and Ameenah Al Marzouqi (Fursati).
In attendance were Hamad Al Shamsi, vice-chairman of Etihad Airways Board, and James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ President and Chief Executive Officer, both of whom addressed the public and praised the graduates’ efforts.
One of the graduates, Rasha Saeed Al Musallami, told Gulf News: “I have always wanted to be a pilot, especially as my sister is one and her career was always an inspiration to me.”
“This programme provided me with the necessary ingredients and the sufficient training to be successful in this career. I will be going to Jaipur in India on Friday as a second officer, so I very much look forward to that.”
“One piece of advice is for people to do what they are passionate about no matter what others tell them. Even though some people tried to stop me for various reasons, I still took the leap and signed up for the programme, and I am very delighted about this decision.”
The five-year cadet pilot programme consists of three and a half years academic studies in partnership with Abu Dhabi University and an 18-month flight training at the Etihad Flight College in Al Ain.
Etihad Airways’ technical engineering programme includes a bachelor’s programme from the Higher Colleges of Technology, the Abu Dhabi Polytechnic Institute, or a specialised aircraft maintenance institute, followed by two years of practical training at Abu Dhabi Airport working on the most modern aeroplanes in the industry.
To start working as engineers, the trainees have to obtain an approved engineer’s licence from the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA).
The Graduate Management programme is a workplace learning programme based on specialised functions, including finance, information technology, global sales, airport operation, audit, human resource, revenue management and network planning.
The programme is underpinned by internationally accredited qualifications and integrates classroom education with on-the-job training both in the UAE and across the network.
On completion of the programme, graduates are deployed in various departments across the business and the airline’s global network.
Maisoon Mubarak is a trainee at Gulf News.
