Senator Sherwin Gatchalian is now seeking the passage of a bill that seeks to rename the existing Philippine State College of Aeronautics (PhilSCA) as the National Aviation Academy of the Philippines (NAAP).
In filing Senate Bill No. 2969, Gatchalian said there is a need to promote aviation safety and security following recent air crash incidents in the country.
He cited the U.S.-contracted surveillance plane that crashed in Maguindanao del Sur on February 6, killing all four personnel on board. He also cited how also on, February 6, a female pilot died when a helicopter crashed in Guimba, Nueva Ecija.
Under the proposed National Academy of the Philippines Charter Act, NAAP will be declared the national professional institution for aviation and mandated to provide young Filipinos with world-class academic and professional training in the field of aviation and other related fields.
SB No. 2969 also mandates the NAAP to produce efficient and well-trained professionals who can competently respond to the needs of the local and international aviation industry.
“In pursuing its mandate, the NAAP shall develop aviation leaders in the Philippine aviation and aerospace industry, both in the private or commercial sector and the government,” Gatchalian said in the explanatory note of the bill.
“The enactment of the proposed measure would enable the Philippine aviation industry to be at par with its international counterparts,” he said.
Under the bill, NAAP will be tasked to strengthen aviation and other related programs by developing and offering industry-driven programs, spearheading collaboration between the academe and the industry, and leading the implementation of innovative teaching and methods in aviation education.
The institution will offer short-term technical-vocational, undergraduate, and graduate courses on aviation and aviation-related programs and these programs shall include a Bachelor of Science in Air Transportation specializing in Commercial Pilot; a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering, including Drone Technology; an Associate in Aircraft Maintenance Technology; and an Associate in Aircraft Electronic Technology.
The measure also ensures that NAAP shall take affirmative steps to give equitable access to its programs and services for disadvantaged students, Indigenous peoples (IPs), poor but deserving students, valedictorians and salutatorians of public high schools, and students from depressed areas.
NAAP will also be mandated to grant scholarships and other affirmative action programs to assist poor but deserving students who qualify for admission to the NAAP.