UK Based Veterans' Charity Opens New Flight Training Centre
A new flight training centre named the Veterans’ Flight School was recently opened in Gloucestershire Airport (GLO) in the west of England. It was opened by the veterans’ charity Wings for Warriors and was officially inaugurated by HRH, the Princess Royal, on the 16th of January. The centre will help in the flight training of veterans on a purely non-profit basis.
Wings For Warriors was founded by a former flight instructor, Mark Radcliffe, in 2012. Radcliffe had met a Royal Marine who was severely injured in Afghanistan, the marine had expressed his wish of becoming a commercial pilot.
Since its founding, the charity has helped around 30 veterans take their first steps into the aviation industry, many of whom are now commercial pilots for reputed airlines in the UK.
The opening ceremony marked the attendance of His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Gloucestershire, Edward Gillespie, along with Gloucestershire Airport’s Managing Director, Jason Ivey, and Mark Radcliffe. The Princess Royal conducted a tour of the facility, observing flight lessons in progress and talking to students and instructors alike. She also met key supporters and investors, along with the veterans who have reaped the benefit of the training programmes.
Founder Radcliffe also went on to talk about how their own charitable training school could significantly help them in their mission to help veterans achieve their dreams of flying. This can help them reduce training costs by a large margin, roughly 40% of the original standard costs. The charity also has support from several private training partners from the industry, like Padpilot and Private Radar, who assist Wings for Warriors in delivering a unique learning experience that helps shape the veterans into first officers with real world experience.
Wings for Warriors is an Approved Training Organisation and operates a Piper PA-28, which helps them in training pilots. The organisation aims to train at least 6 to 10 pilots every 18 months.
Brookfield Aviation International is pleased with the efforts made by organisations like Wings for Warriors to help veterans become talented pilots. Our extensive reach and network ensure that we are able to assist organisations to place their skilled pilots at reputable airlines across the globe.
