SLAF's newest endeavour for students interested in aviation:

A peek into aviation

By Shanika Sriyananda

The De Havilland Tiger Moth and the Chipmunk TMK.10 , the two former 'flying beauties', which stood majestically, surprised the group when the instructor said 'they were still flying'

" This is the oldest aircraft in Sri Lankan aviation history. It is one of the most famous bi-planes in the world and was developed as a basic pilot trainer during the Second World War", he explained to the group of members of the Young Aviators Club.

Gathered at the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Base, Ratmalana, they followed a three-day course on 'Aviation Fundamentals for Beginners' conducted by the SLAF during the August school holidays.

For Isira Senanayake of Sussex College, Nugegoda becoming a pilot was a dream. Attracted to aircraft from his small days, the grade eight student, browses the net for information about aircraft and piloting when he has breathing space after completing his studies.

He said the SLAF website was one of his favourite sites and the advertisement which appereared on the site about the course quenched his thirst for more activity on piloting.

" I have gone in an aircraft but this is the first time I saw how it works. I have learned a lot about aircraft and the system that works to fly it", he said.

Isira said they were taken to a cockpit and he was happy that he could follow the course.The ambition of the grade nine student, Sri Prathap Wijesuriya, is to become an aircraft engineer.

"I collect planes and make models using cardboard and regifoam by fixing a motor to them", he said the course was extremely useful to get to know more about how the flying object works and the technology to make his creations more efficient.

Fighter jets at the museum was one of their favourite aircraft and they wanted to know the experiences of Kfir aircraft pilots.They brushed up the knowledge gained from the course and, were inquisitive to know about the flying hours of pilots, how they knew the exact location of landing, precautions take in an emergency and many other practical queries.There were 60 students from grade seven to Advanced Level from various schools who followed the 14th workshop and they were given the opportunity to participate in the lectures, demonstrations, experimental sessions and practical experiences with real aircraft.

The young aviators were taught basic fundamentals of aviation, evolution and development of aircraft, basic aerodynamics, structure and the main parts of the aircraft, basic helicopter theory and basics of communication and instrumentation.They were also taken to workshops of Aero Engineering Support Wing (ASW) of SLAF Base Rathmalana, and the Air Traffic Control tower of Rathmalana Airport to enhance their practical knowledge on aviation.

"The SLAF wants to contribute its knowledge to the future generation. Our Commander Air Marshal Harsha Abeywickrama, is the brainchild of this project, which is popular among school children", Wing Commander Chandana Liyanage, Commanding Officer of the SLAF Museum said.He said the objective of this project was to provide a basic knowledge on aviation and give an opportunity to those who were interested in aviation to enhance their knowledge and to lay a basic, yet strong foundation for future 'aviators'.

"We started this trial and error method, as the SLAF had no experience of teaching young children. We gathered the knowledge from our officers who have visited Air Force museums in other countries and got instructions f rom our foreign counterparts to design the course and the modules. Then we put the hard theoretical lessons in aviation into small capsules and did some practical sessions using the modules that we made with some of the children in our families and friends. The outcome was a success and children loved the facts they learnt", he said while explaining how the course saw the light of day.The initial publicity campaign through the SLAF website, print and electronic media saw an unexpected number of applications and instead of one workshop, the SLAF had to conduct four workshops during the August holidays last year.

"We couldn't refuse the children so we took them all in. Over 300 children took part in the course and this year only during the last August school vacations we conducted workshops for over 360 students. The demand is growing", Wing Commander Liyanage said.He said the feedback from the children and their parents was encouraging. " Most of the children like aircraft but lack the knowledge of how the heavy flying object or the machine is in the air. Basically we teach them in a simple way hoe the machines take to the air and at the end they have a basic idea of the what is involved in flying the machine", he explained adding that each child is given paper aircraft models to fix and fly by themselves.According to Wing Commander Liyanage, the SLAF wants to inspire children not only about the technical aspect of aviation but the technology involved in flying an aircraft."Our ultimate goal is to see some of these students doing Phds in the aviation field or becoming top pilots or engineers or technicians in aviation. If we can achieve that, the SLAF will be proud. We hope this basic motivation will help some of them to be retained in the field", he said.

He said there were no plans to influence these children to join the SLAF but those whose desire to become airmen in the SLAF can join it or join the technical school in Ekala depending on their future desires.The SLAF plans to continue the interaction with members of the Young Aviators Club by holding annual one-day workshops for past students. " We want to update their knowledge in aviation by holding one-day day workshops on selected topics.

This year October we will bring last year's batch of 300 children to the workshop on landing gear", he said.Wing Commander Liyanage thanked the SLAF Commander and the Director Aeronautical Engineering of the Air Force, Air Vice Marshal Jayanath Kumarasiri for giving the necessary support and guidance to make the courses a success.The young aviators are given an ID to visit 12 times a month and the facility to use the SLAF reference library at the Museum premises. It has a collection of unique books related to aviation.Sanjaya Ranatunge, travelled daily from Kuliyapitiya to Ratmalana with his two sons - Lohan and Mohan, who are aircraft lovers.

The two brothers studying in grade three and six are from the Madampe National School and Sariputta Primary School Kuliyapitiya and wanted to find out more about how aircraft were flying in the sky.